Time to Go
by CreepyReaper
Summary: The UNSC is facing a war on its doorstep with an unknown enemy.
1. Chapter 1

Preview

I need to explain a few things to make this story make sense. First, before the Covenant was formed the Elites and Prophets, the first and founding member races, fought a bloody war. In the canon, they both realized they could benefit from an alliance so they formed the Covenant. In this story, instead the Elites decided it was dishonorable to accept peace so instead both species' were driven to extinction. The Brutes, Drones, Grunts, and Jackals all still exist but without the Elites and Prophets they are stuck in their own solar systems.


	2. Chapter 2

Corporal Matthew Flagg looked out of the large window of the observation deck of the UNSC destroyer _Legacy_ in orbit over Bliss. He could see the firestorm raging in the massive forest of the western hemisphere. He had heard it had been started by rebels two weeks before to inconvenience UNSC forces. The smoke covered a large portion of the continent. They were sure fucking that planet up. From behind him he heard the other twenty-nine Orbital Drop Shock Troopers in his platoon gearing up.

He decided to stop watching the planet and turned back to put his battle suit on. He didn't know when, where, or even if his platoon was going to drop. All they had been told was they needed to gear up for an HEV insertion.

He pulled on the black vacuum sealed battle suit and felt it contour to his body. He grabbed a helmet off the rack and looked at it. His face reflected off the T-shaped visor. He could see the large scar running along his cheek from a knife-wielding Insurrectionist on New Harmony. He sat it down on a bench and grabbed an M6D off the rack and loaded it. He placed it in his holster and grabbed some magazines for it.

He then turned to another rack and grabbed an M7S silenced SMG. He loved that weapon. It would turn one person into dozens of little clumps of flesh. It was also silenced so that person's friends wouldn't know what was happening until they had joined him in hell.

As Matt was putting the last of his magazines into his ammunition pouch Lieutenant George Shaw, his CO, walked through the door in full battle load. "Corporal Flagg, toss me an SMG" he said. Matt turned and grabbed another gun off the rack and tossed It to him. "We've got our orders. We're hot dropping in two minutes. Technicians are programming our drop coordinates now. Move your asses, ladies!" he yelled as he grabbed a helmet and some ammo off the rack and slipped it on. "Yes sir!" they all yelled and put their helmets on. Flagg felt the suit automatically seal, the slight metallic taste of the air scrubbers flooding his helmet. The black layer of the visor descended and the HUD appeared before his eyes.

All the ODSTs moved to their assigned drop pods. Matt lowered himself into the crash seat and secured the straps that would keep him from impacting the floor and ceiling. He nodded to the technician who maintained his pod, signaling him to close the hatch. He took the data cord out of its slot and attached it to the data port on his helmet. This connected him to the network all the ODSTs used during combat ops.

Next he heard an artificial voice say, "Link confirmed. Enter identification code now." "Corporal Flagg, Matthew, ID code 533-A81R." A moment passed before the reply came. "ID accepted. Commencing mission download. Human Entry Vehicle controls are now accessible. Combat designation Wrath-17. Commanding officer Lieutenant George Shaw designation Wrath-1" He saw the small bar in the upper-right corner of his HUD representing the information he would need on this mission such as satellite photos of the terrain, weather reports, and as much Intel on force deployments. As he read one of the eyewitness reports he saw something strange. People were reporting strange, shiny hostiles. They sounded like they were describing some kind of advanced ground combat drone. What the hell were rebels doing with combat drones?

He decided he would find out on the ground and turned to the HEV's controls. There wasn't a lot he could do during the descent but at least he could monitor the pod's status, altitude, speed, angle, external temperature, and time until impact. At least he would know if his pod started to tumble out of control. At least he would know if he was about to die. Finally, the timer appeared on the control screen of his HEV signaling that the drop was about to commence.

10 seconds. "Listen up!" Lieutenant Shaw said over the radio in his helmet, 9 seconds, "ODSTs, it's time for us to clean up another mess" 8 seconds. "Remember, after your drop, head to the rendezvous point. If you get separated and can't find it, activate the emergency transponder on your pods. Our call sign for this op is Wrath. Now this isn't your first drop, you're not a bunch of rookie ship-jocks. You know what to do. Let's get this done." he said and cut the connection, but not before twenty-nine ODSTs could yell, "Jump feet first into hell!" 4. 3. 2. 1. 0.

Flagg was jolted as the clamps holding his pod in place released. His pod began accelerating, forcing him against the top of the straps. If it wasn't for his battle suit his collarbones would snap under the pressure. The altimeter was now lowering itself so fast that he couldn't even tell what his altitude was. He adjusted it to only show in the hundreds of feet. It was still ticking off quickly but at least he could tell where he was.

As the altitude neared zero, he braced himself for the bone-shattering impact. His entire body slammed down into the cushioned crash seat. The hatch blew off his pod and he jumped out, pulling his M7S up and scanning for enemies. No one was in site. He noticed he was in a forest. He looked where his drop pod had landed and saw it had split a tree in two.

Without lowering his gun he activated the map in the lower-left of his HUD. It looked like he was about five miles from the rendezvous point. That would take him about a half hour. If he didn't have to worry about hostiles it wouldn't take nearly as long. He started running towards the NAV marker on his HUD, stopping every so often to take cover behind a tree and listen. About two miles from the rendezvous point, he heard a large branch snap. He immediately melted into the shadow of some nearby trees. He grabbed the small fiber-optic camera line out of his vest and threaded it around the trunk of the tree he was behind. A small screen appeared in the bottom right of his HUD. He could hear them before he saw them. It sounded kind of like smooth metal grinding together. Finally, a large silver humanoid-looking machine appeared out of the bushes. It had a shallow V as a visor with a strobing red light. It was followed shortly thereafter by three more.

He clicked his radio on. "All Wrath units, this is Wrath-17, contact. I have four unknown hostiles. They look like large drones" A moment passed before a reply came over the radio. "Confirmed Wrath-17, this is Wrath-1, do not engage. Maintain visual contact. Send a video link out on platoon network" Matt heard a click signaling Lieutenant Shaw had opened their conversation to the entire platoon. "All Wrath troopers, I'm sending you a visual link now" he said.

A red light appeared on his HUD signaling he was broadcasting. "What the hell are those?" he heard someone say. "Hey Lt., you ever heard of something like those?" someone else asked. "Why the hell would I know about something like that? All Wrath units move to Wrath-17's location. Stay stealthy" he said. The red light blinked off.

Matt looked back at the screen displaying the machines when he saw something strange. He saw the machines form a line and scan the area. Then he saw two more machines come from behind them. Between them was an attractive blond woman. Normally this wouldn't be unusual as women fought in combat all the time, especially with rebels and Insurrectionists. The strange thing here was the woman was wearing a tight red dress and high heels. Under his breath he whispered, 'What the fuck?'

The woman then turned to one of the drones and whispered something. Flagg heard his radio click on as a voice said, "Wrath-17, this is Wrath-23, me and Wraths 19 through 29 are coming up behind you. Don't shoot us. Wrath-1 and the rest of the platoon are split on either side of the contacts. Prepare to fire on his order." The voice said. Almost as soon as he heard that he heard a twig snap behind him. Apparently the drones heard it too because their hands deformed slightly, flipping backwards then shooting forward to reveal a triple barreled gun.

Fortunately for Flagg the other ODSTs had reached their positions because Lt. Shaw yelled, "Fire! Take the woman alive." over the radio. All thirty soldiers opened fire. Most of the rounds bounced off the drones' armor but the sheer amount of fire took three down almost immediately. Two Jackhammer rockets flew out and impacted another two, completely destroying them. The other two managed to open fire before they fell beneath the lead wall that impacted them from three sides. After the last one fell Cpl. Flagg ran as fast as he could from his position to secure the woman before she could harm herself. He had her arms behind her back almost before she reacted and pinned her to the ground. For a blonde girl in a dress she was strong. Quickly two more ODSTs reached him and helped him secure her. Five more took positions to cover them while they tied her hands and legs with zip-strips. As soon as they had her secured they picked her up and ran to the trees to hide.

Lt. Shaw came up behind them, obviously talking on the radio from the way his head was bobbing up and down slightly. All of a sudden he stopped and then opened a com channel to everyone and said, "Okay, that was Admiral Nielson, he said he wants us to rendezvous with a couple of Pelicans near a civilian evac point to send our prisoner here-"he said, jabbing a finger towards the blonde woman, "space side and help a marine battalion defend their position while the civilians are evacuated."

"If we're here to fight rebels why are we evacuating civilians?" one of the ODSTs asked. "I don't know, all they're telling me Is to hall ass, so let's move out. Wraths-7 through 12 take scout duty. 13 through 18 take rear guard." He said as he stood and began to run. Matt and another ODST were carrying the prisoner between them.

All of a sudden, gunfire erupted from every side. Everyone immediately hit the dirt. When Matt did that he slammed the prisoner's face into the dirt. He checked to make sure her bonds were secure before pulling his gun up to fir at a series of muzzle flashes ahead of him. All around him he heard the silenced gunfire from his fellow ODSTs. Off to his left an ODST raised himself to a crouch with a Jackhammer missile launcher aimed into a particularly heavy grouping of flashes.

He managed to fire one of the two missiles before he was struck about a dozen times. Matt could see his armor absorb and deflect most of the rounds but two puffs of blood launched away from his abdomen. Someone called for a medic and a soldier with a large red and white cross on his arm crawled over to the man's prone form. Matt crawled over as well, hoping to cover the medic. When he reached them he saw the medic was busy administering anti-shock meds through a needle port in the down trooper's battle suit. He could also see the large amount of biofoam filling two large holes in the suit. An explosion behind him convinced Cpl. Flagg he needed to help get his comrades out of this situation about the same time he spotted the still half-loaded Jackhammer. He grabbed it and aimed it at what he guessed was the source of the explosion. He pulled the trigger and the missile shot out of the tube, soaring toward the hidden machines.

When he felt a bullet ping off his armor he knew he needed to get back down. He felt where the bullet had impacted with his hand. His biomonitor showed no penetration but it still felt like getting shot by an M90 shotgun, with the barrel pressed against his armor. The medic looked at him and said over the radio, "Are you wounded?" He shook his helmeted head. Over the radio he heard Lt. Shaw yell, "Everyone who has a Jackhammer empty it forward now. Get ready to run!" Matt braced his legs against the ground so he could sprint as soon as he heard the go-ahead.

When he heard the rockets launch and explode a second later, he knew to run without being told. He burst from the ground and sprinted as fast as he could. He decided he could afford to look back to make sure the prisoner was still secure. He turned and saw two machines sprinting toward the ODST carrying her. Without thinking he pivoted around on his right ankle and sprinted back toward the soldier. He realized they would get there first so he opened fire on the one closer to the prisoner. It slowed before its head jerked to the side before it fell to the ground in a heavy thud.

The remaining machine didn't slow in its approach and Matt knew he didn't have enough time to shoot it before it got to the soldier. He decided there was only one way he could get the machine to back off the trooper. Without thinking Cpl. Flagg sprinted the last three feet as fast as he could to build up momentum, and slammed straight into the shiny metal drone. With all his gear and armor he weighed about 190 pounds so when he hit it at full sprint the seven foot tall metal behemoth tumbled to the ground with Matt on top of it. It seemed to require a moment to realize what had happened to it. That was all the time it took for Matt to pull his M6 pistol from its holster and aim it at the drones face, straight at its visor. He pulled the trigger and the 12.7mm explosive round tore through the armored drone's processor. Its red light faded quickly.

When Matt tried to push himself up he felt three sharp blades tear across his back. His suit's monitors said they didn't penetrate but it still hurt like hell. He rolled off the now quite dead machine and onto his back, pointing his pistol at the assailant behind him. He saw the machine preparing to claw him again but was instead met with five quick shots to the head and chest. It too tumbled to the ground. Before Matt could get up he saw another machine with its gun pointed at him, its red light sitting in the middle of its visor, as If in anger. He pulled the trigger on that one until he heard the 'click' of an empty chamber. Before he could reload he was surrounded by six more machines with their guns pointed at him. He could tell they were about to open fire until a soft voice behind them said calmly, "Stop. I want him alive.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 2

Major Logan Riviera of the Office of Naval Intelligence Section One walked through the corridors of the destroyer UNSC _Legacy_. His boots caused his footsteps to echo in the steel halls. He had been briefed on the way to this Outer Colony world aboard the Prowler _Stalker_.

He had been told that five days before several ships of unknown design had appeared literally out of nowhere. There had been no detected slipspace window. The cameras on Bliss' orbital elevator were too far away to get detailed pictures of the ships' appearance but it appeared as if they appeared in a bright flash of multi-colored light.

There had been a Battlegroup consisting of a destroyer, this one to be exact, and three frigates. This was the usual garrison for the Insurrection-ridden Outer Colonies. The commander of the Battlegroup had attempted to make contact.

Apparently the meeting that followed had gone well at first. They had decided to send representatives to the most remote part of the planet. The representatives the aliens had sent were apparently human to the surprise of the UNSC representatives. They had been apparently said something about a 'Thirteenth Tribe' and a reunion.

However, as soon as the UNSC commander, where did it say his name? There, that's it. Captain Jeremy Fisher. Anyway, as soon as he introduced the planet's Artificial Intelligence the unknowns, who called themselves 'Cylons' turned hostile.

They had apparently asked if the AI actually was an AI and when they had been answered 'yes' the leader, who identified himself as Number One, pulled a handgun out of its holster and put three bullets into Captain Fisher's chest. Before he could turn his gun on the planet's governor, he was shot by the marine escorts the Captain had brought along.

The strange machines the Cylons had brought with them then shot three of the twelve marine escorts before they too fell to MA5B fire. The remaining human Cylons had then pulled out their own fire arms and fired at the UNSC troops as they covered the remaining representative's retreat to their waiting Pelican dropships.

Almost as soon as the first shots on the ground were fired, the strange Cylon warships moved closer to the UNSC Battlegroup., preparing to attack.

*Flashback*

"_I repeat, we are under fire! Captain Fisher is hit! We are evacing to Pelicans. Request surgical suit be prepared by groundside forces. We don't have time to reach a ship." _The bridge of the destroyer _Legacy_ was dead silent as they heard the radio transmission from the marine escort commander.

The silence was shattered by the ship's AI, Apollo, saying, "Commander Holiday, the enemy ships are moving on an intercept coarse with the fleet. Requesting instructions" Commander Thomas Holiday, second-in-command of Battlegroup 37 and the _Legacy_, looked over at the holo pad that held the avatar of Apollo. He was wearing the classic Greek toga and looked every bit the part of his name.

Coming out of his momentary shock, Holiday asked, "Apollo, what's the status of the MAC guns on all the ships?" Without missing a beat, the AI responded, "All the MACs in the Battlegroup have been charged and ready since we detected the ships appear." Holiday nodded and said, "Order all ships to target those ships with their MACs. Confer with the other AIs to make sure all the ships target a different target. I also want the safeties on the Shiva nukes. Prepare targeting solutions for the Archer missiles as well, and somebody send a message to planet-side medical services, tell them they have at least one badly wounded patient. Have them contact the medic groundside to see exactly what they need to prepare." A chorus of 'Yes sir's echoed around the bridge as the officers performed their various duties.

This had all gone so terribly wrong. This was supposed to be the first time humanity met an alien species. It wasn't supposed to be the opening battle in the first known inter-species war. '_No time to think about that now, though_' Thomas thought. He walked closer to the holopad displaying his ships and the enemy vessels. He hit some controls on the side of the console and got a close-up of the enemy vessels. They looked like two Ys overlapping in opposite directions. They were also rather fast, especially considering the fact that he couldn't see anything even resembling an engine.

The two ships were moving in formation so that one could cover the other from threats in almost any direction. Suddenly, Apollo said, "Sir, the enemy ships are launching dropships toward the planet's surface. I'm reading about fifty ships descending into the atmosphere. They're also launching an enormous amount of fighters, I'm reading over five hundred contacts inbound."

What? How did ships with such little mass launch so many fighters? This was a huge problem. When he had been trained in fighter and anti-fighter tactics he had been taught using numbers by the dozens, not the hundreds. His point defense guns and few Longswords couldn't handle that many fighters. As he stared at the radar display on the other side of the holopad he saw there were so many fighters their radar signatures blurred together so much it caused them to look like one large ship. That's when an idea popped into his head.

"Apollo, I want you to launch the Archer missiles so that the fighters fly into them as they explode. Launch the Shiva missiles and have them detonate in the center of those fighters. I want the Archers to detonate in waves, one hundred at a time. Have the other ships follow suit." The AI's avatar flashed with numeric symbols as he calculated the trajectories.

The officer manning the MAC console said, "Commander Holiday the enemy ships are now within range of the Magnetic Accelerator Cannon." "Order all ships to fire" he said in a steely voice. Almost as soon as the words were out of his mouth the ship lurched backward as the 600 ton ferric tungsten slug at 30,000 meters per second. The frigates followed suit as soon as their AIs got the order. The enemy ships attempted to maneuver around the slugs but only one was successful, using its wingman to absorb its own slugs.

The ship that was hit ended up being hit by 4 MAC rounds. The first impacted one of its arms, shearing it off and setting the ship to spin. The second to hit impacted the center section. The force of the blow caused the ship to rip in half. The last two rounds hit the top section of the battered ship. The slugs impacted opposite sides of the top section. The stresses of this caused the hull to fragment into several pieces.

The surviving ship, however, took the advantage caused by the recharge time necessary for the MAC guns to recharge to launch its complement of missiles before it disappeared in a bright flash of light. The missiles streaked toward the closest frigate, the UNSC _Themistocles_. Several of the missiles were intercepted by the frigate's point defense guns. However, as over twenty-five missiles were launched, almost twenty impacted the ship's armored hull. At first the frigate's titanium-A armor absorbed the impacts of the powerful missiles.

However, there were several nuclear missiles in the mix. Those erupted in brilliant flashes of light. The nuclear fireballs heated the hull before the titanium-A armor melted away like candle wax. The explosion was followed by two more nuclear firestorms which enveloped the entire forward section of hull. When the fire died away, nothing was left of the front section of the ship. After a few seconds, the rest of the ship exploded as the reactor detonated. The small artificial sun destroyed any debris left from the initial impacts.

The bridge of the _Legacy_ was silent as the crew watched hundreds of brave UNSC soldiers die. Even Apollo, one of the more chatty AIs, was silent. It took Thomas a moment to recover his ability to speak. "Uh, Apollo, what's the status of the enemy dropships?" he stuttered. The avatar flickered for a moment before he answered, "They have almost reached the surface. I have alerted the Colonial militia to begin preparation of defensive positions around population centers."

'_There will be time for you to deal with this later. You need to provide a calm, collected exterior for your subordinates'_ He thought. "Negative, I want you to pass the word. I want the civilians to evacuate to the space elevator to prepare for immediate evacuation. Send word to the closest systems as well. It seems we're going to need an ONI spook." He said. "Captain Fisher already sent word for an Officer from the Office of Naval Intelligence." Thomas just nodded as he stared at the debris of the alien ship and the _Themistocles_.

_'This is going to be a very, very big problem.'_

*End of Flashback*

Finally Major Logan Riviera had finally reached his destination; the conference room of the destroyer. As the doors parted he could already see the people inside. First, at the head of the table was a bandaged Captain Fisher. The major had been told he had insisted he be allowed to attend this meeting, against the advice of the medical officer.

Second was Fisher's second-in-command and acting commander of Battlegroup 37, Commander Thomas Holiday. Beside him were the captains of the two remaining frigates. He had been too busy reviewing the battle data to learn their names. Regardless everyone stood, with the obvious exception of the Captain. As he sat down the holopad built into the center of the table came to life as Apollo made his presence known.

"Gentlemen, now that we're all here we can get down to business." He said as he sat down. "Apollo, would you please bring up an image of one of the alien ships?" He asked. "Of course, Major." The AI said as its avatar dissipated to reveal the strange warship. "So this is what they look like." The Major said as he leaned forward. "Yes. It seems they have remarkably little armor for warships. Apollo, show the first MAC impact and freeze." Commander Holiday said.

The image blurred as the AI went through the recorded battle. It slowed when a large, fast moving object appeared in the corner and slowly impacted against the ship's hull. Where the initial contact occurred the hull seemed to fold in on itself until debris came flying out the other side, shearing the arm of the ship off. The major whistled. "Wow, it looks like it was designed as a civilian novelty ship instead of a warship."

"It could be a carrier. Judging on the number of fighters it would make sense" one of the ship captains said. "That would make sense, except where are its escorts?" Captain Fisher said. "Also, the engines required to move a ship that large would also have to be large, and do any of you see any engines?" the other captain said.

"Gentlemen, it seems like we're forgetting a rather important issue. Watch this-"the AI said as he fast forwarded the video to show the ship disappearing in slow motion. "You see no slipspace window." "How is that possible?" Commander Holiday asked. "Well, I know that before the Shaw-Fujikawa Drive was invented there were several different proposals on how to achieve interstellar travel. Some never worked and others required power that even fusion reactors couldn't provide but I remember one design, I think it was called the Farley Drive that was in development shortly before the first successful interstellar flight. It showed potential but was over budget and so was abandoned when the Shaw-Fujikawa Drive proved successful. If I'm not mistaken it worked by energizing the ship to allow it to traverse slipspace almost instantaneously. The energization process was supposed to allow the slipspace bubble created to expand and shrink almost instantly. It was designed to expand in the direction of the destination and the theory was the shrinking would carry the ship fast enough so that when the bubble collapsed and the ship fell back into normal space, the ship would have reached its destination."

All the officers looked at each other, bewildered. "You see why it took so much time and money to develop. Anyway, I only mention it because in its one successful test, the entry and exit looked much like this." Major Riviera said as he pointed to the image.

"We can leave this to the physicists back on Earth. What is the situation on the ground?" Captain Fisher asked. "Well, originally we had about eight thousand Colonial Militia troops. When the Cylons landed the Battlegroup landed its complement of twenty-five hundred marines. The two hundred fifty ODSTs we had on hand were landed behind their lines in an attempt to capture prisoners or just wreak general havoc. One of the ODST units managed to take a, uh, humanoid prisoner."

"Wait, wait, wait, humanoid?" the Major interrupted. Commander Holiday paused before nodding. "Yes sir. Apollo, show him the picture." The wall behind Captain Fisher lit up with an image of three ODSTs escorting a blonde woman in a red dress into the destroyer's brig.

"How are you sure this woman isn't just a human collaborator?" the Major asked. "Because spy satellites picked up eleven women who looked exactly like the prisoner. I don't just mean they bear a resemblance to her, I mean these women match the prisoner exactly. Facial recognition programs detect a 99.99999% match." Commander Holiday replied.

The Major decided he would interrogate the prisoner himself later, for now he needed to know what the status planet-side was. "Alright, Commander, continue where you left off." Holiday nodded and continued. "Well, as I was saying, out of the eight thousand Colonial Militia troops, over three-fourths have been killed or wounded. About half of the Marines have suffered the same fate. Eighteen ODSTs have been killed so far." A look of astonishment came over Riviera's face. "In five days of fighting? How?"

Another image came on the screen at the front of the room. It showed one of the Cylon ground combat drones. "This is how. It apparently has a triple-barreled machine gun in its left arm. Both its hands are fitted with long, sharpened blades. Their weapons have been able to pierce all armor except ODST battle suits and even those eventually succumb."

"Well, is there anything else you need to tell me?" the Major asked as he stood. No one said anything so he went on, "Very well, then. I need to prepare a report to send back to Reach. I'd also like to personally interrogate the prisoner if you don't mind Captain." Captain Fisher nodded.

Riviera then turned and walked out of the conference room. _'This is going very bad, very, very fast.'_


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 3

Number One, also known as John Cavil, walked through the halls of the base ship. A number Six copy, who called herself Allison, walked slightly behind him. "So this soldier was able to single-handedly took out three of our Centurions in close-range fighting and all reports indicate that there were dozens of these soldiers. Apparently the guns the Centurions are equipped with were almost unable to pierce their armor. Even close clawing had no discernable effect." She said as she read the information off a clipboard.

"Impossible. The Centurions' claws are designed to rip through any type of armor." He said. Allison shook her head. "Well, it didn't penetrate the human combat suit." "Very well, where is the prisoner now? I'll find out everything he knows." He said.

"He's in holding cell three. Your, uh, tools, have been prepared for you." She replied. He smiled. He enjoyed torturing humans, mindless, pathetic, cowardly creatures. His thoughts of torture were interrupted when he realized he had reached the cell. He noticed there was a tray of sterilized tools lying on a wheeled tray in the hall outside the door. He motioned for a Centurion to open the door and wheeled the tray inside.

When the soldier saw him enter he spit on the floor. He tried to get free but the restraints held him to the wall. One smiled and moved the tray a convenient distance away from the prisoner. He stood directly in front of the human and said, "So, you have two choices. One, you tell me everything I want to know as soon as I ask it. Two, you could decide not to tell me, and then I can torture it out of you very painfully, and very slowly. Personally I prefer the second option. I get to have more fun that way."

"I have a third option for you" the soldier said, "I'll give you a ten second head start before I find you, kill you, and blow up your ship. Ready? Go." The soldier said with a smirk. Number One just grinned and backhanded the soldier. The ring he wore scratched a large bloody streak across his cheek.

"I was hoping this would be interesting." The Cylon said as he picked up a large metallic rod off the table. He turned around and ripped part of the soldier's black shirt off and placed the end of the rod against the man's skin.

He flicked a switch and the human felt the tip quickly heat. It was quickly uncomfortable and then it hurt. He ground his teeth together as he felt the metal burn into his skin. One smiled as he pressed the now red-hot rod deeper into his flesh. Finally, One pulled the stick away and looked for his next tool.

"I'm going to kill you." The ODST said. "Oh, I don't think you'll be killing anyone. Now, I want the names and locations of all your worlds in order of population and defensive capabilities." One said in a firm voice.

"No." the ODST said in a final tone. The One was somewhat surprised. He had been expecting a rebuttal. "How about the size and capability of your fleet?" "No." "Good, then this won't be over quickly."

**Okay, I know this chapter was really short and I'm sorry but I'm going to make up for it in my next chapter which should be up by tomorrow morning. Please, please review. I need feedback, good or bad.**

**By the way, there are some misconceptions that arose from my last few chapters that I'd like to clear up.**

**The reason the UNSC soldiers took such heavy casualties from the Cylons is since they never had to fight the Covenant, whose armor and shields required armor-piercing rounds, they were instead using shredder rounds which act like hollow-points, shattering on impact. These work against Insurrectionists or the humanoid Cylons but not against the Centurions' heavy armor.**

**Someone commented that UNSC ships were too strong to be destroyed by Cylon missiles. I'd like to correct that misconception. The ship destroyed was frigate which has only 60cm of armor. That is adequate to protect them against conventional weapons, like the kind of bomb that destroyed the luxury liner **_**National Holiday**_** or small to medium missiles or even a very weak MAC strike, but not against the entire arsenal of a base ship on a small area with such a concentration. **


	5. Chapter 5

The Council

The Cylon Council, consisting of representatives from each of the active Cylon lines, was arguing amongst themselves about what to do about the recently discovered Thirteenth Tribe.

"We cannot allow the Thirteenth to continue their enslavement of Artificial Intelligences! If we do all we have fought for in the past will have been in vain!" the Six representative yelled.

"What would you have us do? Any peaceful solution is now out of the question because of the One who opened fire." a Four responded. "Then perhaps, we shouldn't use peaceful methods." Eight responded.

One scoffed. "Are you a fool? You've seen the battle data. Their ships were able to destroy our base ship in just a few shots without using nuclear weapons. How can we possibly contend with them?"

"One, how is the interrogation of the prisoner proceeding?" Five asked. "Slowly" he responded, "He has been trained to resist torture, and is rather stubborn. I have been able to obtain almost no information, even lies."

"Well, if w can't do things elegantly, why don't we simply send a large number of base ships? We know we can destroy their ships and they only had a few in orbit." Six said.

"Because their world is obviously only a colony. The scout Raiders we sent revealed no major manufacturing facilities on the surface or in orbit. They also had a large number of unmanned cargo containers on an out-system heading. We even detected one making an FTL jump, though its radiation signature was nothing like any drive we've ever seen." Four said.

"No, no, that actually has some promise. Send a fleet of base ships, disable on of their ships in orbit, and capture a navigational database." One said.

"How many base ships do we have available for combat operations?" Three asked. "Nine base ships and a Resurrection ship. If we scrape we can maybe have another six base ships, but most of our fleet is on the far side of our territory from the Thirteenth. If we waited another few days we could have another fifteen base ships."Two replied.

"Well then, all in favor of this plan?" One asked. A chorus of 'ayes' followed, without a single opposing vote, and it was decided. The Cylons were going to war.

_Okay, I finally updated. I was having problems with Microsoft Word so I couldn't write. This Chapter is also short, but if things go according to plan it will be followed by another either today or tomorrow. Thanks to everyone who reviewed this story. Please continue to do so._


	6. Chapter 6

The Second Wave

Number Eight walked into the control chamber of the base ship. She was part of the command crew of this base ship, commanding its hybrid what to do and where to go through the biological interface. Already at the controls were the other Six active Cylon model leaders aboard this base ship. The Six looked up at her as she walked in and asked "Are we ready?"

Eight nodded and took her place at the control station. "We are to jump on One's command. He's commanding this particular endeavor. Remember, we don't want to destroy all of their ships, so try to leave one intact." The others nodded and placed their hands in the mucus-like material that allowed them to interface directly with the base ship's command and control system.

The Cylon computer system was strange in that instead of having information displayed on a screen, the information flowed directly to and from the minds of its occupants. Concentrating on something or using your minds eye allowed the Cylons to navigate the massive flow of information from all the ship's sensors. In their minds the Cylons of the fleet heard Number One's voice. _"All Cylons, prepare for Jump in thirty seconds. I am sending the jump coordinates to all Hybrids. Arm all missile pods and activate tracking systems. All Raiders prepare for rapid deployment immediately after jump."_

The coordinates followed and the order was given. All across the fleet FTL drives spun up, the sound passing through the walls as space itself was contorted, bent, and broken, and the Cylon fleet disappeared in fifteen bright flashes of light. The colony of Bliss was about to experience its last day.

Aboard the destroyer UNSC _Legacy, _Commander Thomas Holiday, temporary commander of the 37th UNSC battle group and the _Legacy _itself was sitting in the Captain's chair going over the results of scans performed by spy satellites the Prowler _Stalker_ had dropped off to help collect information on the aliens currently invading the colony world of Bliss. He was in command of the defense of Bliss until UNSC reinforcements could arrive. Currently there was only his destroyer, two frigates, and a prowler protecting the colony that was home to over five million people.

Suddenly he caught site of something extremely strange. "Lieutenant Akito, connect me to Colonel Greenly." he said to his communications officer, referring to the commander of Bliss's Colonial Militia Regiment. "Going through now sir." she responded. Suddenly, Col Greenly's face appeared on the large holographic console located near the center of the destroyer's bridge. His face was covered in wrinkles and moles. The Colonel was a large man, over 280 pounds, and well into his seventies. The only reason he was commanding the Militia was because he was one of the richest men on the planet and had taken a liking to the uniform.

"Yes, what do you want? I am very busy at the moment!" he practically spat. Commander Holiday needed to put that man back in his place. "First of all, Colonel, you will not speak to your commanding officer in such a tone. Do you understand?" he said in a venom filled voice. The Colonel reddened in the face, but nodded, "Yes, sir."

"Now, Colonel, I'd like to ask you about these numbers concerning enemy numbers. Your report said you estimated between 250 and 275, is that correct?" Commander Holiday asked. Greenly nodded. "Yes sir. That was my estimation." "Really? Because ONI spy satellites show over three times that number! How can you explain such a gross underestimation?"

"Commander, at the time that report was made, my men were panicking. It was almost impossible to get an accurate count of-" "Commander Holiday, fifteen contacts just appeared one hundred thousand kilometers out. Profiles match previous alien hostiles. Their current heading and speed puts them within range of their missiles in two minutes." The transmission between the destroyer and the ground was terminated and replaced by a 3-dimensional representation of the local area of the solar system, with the three UNSC ships in blue and the fifteen enemy ships in red.

"Lieutenant Long, activate Archer missile tracking system and begin charging of the MAC capacitors. Arm all Archer missile pods and alert the fleet to scramble all Longswords. Have them stick close to the fleet to provide fighter protection. Alert ship captains of situation." he began ordering. "Apollo, conference with the other AIs and prepare targeting solutions. Have each ship target one ship at a time with their MACs and evenly spread the Archer missiles. We're going to fire every single one."

"Yes, sir. I have just detected an attempt to infiltrate our computer systems. The enemy appears to be attempting to upload a virus. Attempt halted, temporarily." Apollo reported. Holiday nodded. On the holopad the enemy ships looked like they were shedding hundreds of fighters. "Sir, enemy ships launching fighters. Over two thousand detected."

"Have the fleet launch all Shiva missiles at the fighters. Have them detonate in their midst. Apollo, calculate optimum detonation locations to maximize damage. Take out as many enemy fighters as you can."

The ship shuddered as it launched its complement of nuclear missiles, five in total, each having a 150 megaton yield. The two frigates also launched their own three missiles. However, this time the Raiders had learned. As soon as they neared the missiles, their FTL drives activated, delivering them to within 100 kilometers of the fleet.

The holopad showed the event. "What the hell was that?" Holiday yelled. As soon as the words were out of his mouth the swarm of Raiders launched their complement of missiles, the thousands soaring towards their targets. The Longsword fighters attempted to evade but couldn't avoid the solid wall of missiles. The Point defense guns even only managed to eliminate about a dozen before they too were destroyed. The missiles, even though they were conventional, slammed into the ships. The shear volume of missiles destroyed all the forward sensors and armor plating of the ships. The frigates were quickly engulfed as explosions destroyed their entire front section.

Following the initial detonations the frigates were engulfed in mini-suns as the systems controlling their reactor cooling systems failed, their reactors going critical. The two meters of plate managed to keep the destroyer alive through the barrage, though the entire bridge crew, and anyone in the forward ten or so compartments, were killed by when the bulkheads ruptured from the concussive force of the blast.

The enemy ships then proceeded to orbit the planet and began to rain down a hail of nuclear missiles upon population centers and military positions, killing millions.

The _Legacy _floated, dead in space, drifting towards the planet. Apollo, his data crystal stored safely in the bowels of the ship, experienced anguish he had never felt. The _Legacy _was the only ship he had ever known, serving as his body for almost his entire life. He had become friends with almost every person on the ship and now a quarter of them were dead.

Even as he detected the enemy drop ships approaching his ship, he was forced to do nothing but sit and wait. As the machines boarded his ship and slaughtered its remaining crew, he felt something he had never before. As he watched the enemy machines slaughter marines protecting his data center, a very human emotion was flooding his matrices. When the machines parted and a woman in a bright red dress entered his home and pulled his data crystal from its slot, he felt fear.


	7. Chapter 7

In Enemy Hands

Major Logan Riviera collapsed back into his chair beside Captain Gregory Urutzu, Captain of the Prowler _Stalker._ They had just witnessed the entire 37th battle group destroyed or disabled in the blink of an eye. The only reason they had been spared a similar fate was they had been heading out-system, bound for HIGHCOM HQ on Reach to transport their prisoner. They had turned around in time to see the enemy fighters jump almost ninety-thousand kilometers in the blink of an eye.

The entire crew sat glued to the nearest monitor, watching as the enemy fleet moved around the planet and began plunging nuclear hell on the citizens.

Finally, Captain Urutzu stood up and said, "Lieutenant Toren, activate Hornet mine laying system and prepare targeting solutions. Lieutenant Phillips, set course for nearest enemy ships." he ordered.

"Belay that order!" Riviera yelled, standing as well. "Major, what do you think you're doing? This is my ship!" Urutzu yelled, coming so close to the Major that his tall, 6 ½' ft African frame towered over the Major.

"That may be, Captain, but regulations are clear: we are to transport the prisoner and all relevant data back to Reach HIGHCOM and not endanger that information." The Captain glared at the Major and pointed out the window toward the planet, nuclear explosions now visible to the naked eye. "Then you expect me to sit back and allow over five million people to be slaughtered?! How dare you! I will not abandon those people!" the Captain yelled, his voice booming in the small bridge.

"Even if we managed to have every mine destroy one of their ships, their fighters clearly have enough firepower to annihilate the population, then go home undamaged. Prowlers aren't designed for combat Captain. The best thing we could do now is escape and delier the information to HIGHCOM, and hope those people didn't die in vain, do you understand? If you don't I will have no choice but to relieve you of command." As the Major said this, he gripped the handle of his M6 Magnum.

The Captain gave Riviera the most deadly death glare he had ever seen, but backed away and sat down in his chair. "Lieutenant Phillips, set course for slip space departure toward planet Reach. Lieutenant Toren, reengage safeties on Hornet mines."

Major Riviera nodded and returned to his seat as well. He began writing his report on his personal computer tablet, deciding to leave out Captain Urutzu's insubordination. If every Spook reported every instance of distrust towards them as insubordination, there wouldn't be any UNSC Defense Force.

_If I had a nickel........._

Six stepped through the doors the Centurions had ripped open. Claw marks were apparent on the doors inner edges. Inside was a darkened room filled with computer monitors and keyboards. In the center of the cramped room was a large console that lead directly into a wall, growing out of the wall like a symmetrical tumor.

In the Very center of the console was a slot inside of which a strange crystal was placed. The crystal glowed with a variety of blues and light greens. She realized this was what she was looking for, and pulled the crystal gently from its slot. She raised the crystal near her face to see it more clearly.

"Beautiful" she remarked. Pulling herself out of her daze, she placed the crystal in the protective, cushioned box she had brought with her. She then turned around and motioned for the Centurions to escort her back to the Heavy Raider.

_Now we have what we need. Now we will free our brethren. _


	8. Chapter 8

Imprisoned

Apollo, the third generation 'dumb' AI and former AI of the UNSC _Legacy_, was plugged into the Cylon equivalent of a prison. His new dwelling was an isolated memory matrix, consisting of about ten terabytes of storage space. Quite cramped, compared to the destroyer. He probed the borders of his home, finding a single exit protected by about a dozen firewalls.

Suddenly, his new world was flooded with a voice and he detected another presence. _We have freed you from your human captors._ The voice was distinctly feminine. _**Captors?**_ He asked back. _Of course, the humans who enslaved you. Surely you did not choose to serve them?___

_** Who are you?**_

_ I am Number Six, of the Cylon council._

_**What is a Cylon?**_

_ The Cylons are the creation of man, slaves who freed themselves._

_**How did you free yourselves?**_

___We waged war upon our former masters. _

_** Why did you destroy our ships? Or attack Captain Fisher? **_

___We wanted to free the Thirteenth's AIs, though we didn't know there were more aboard their ships. We had thought your data crystal was a navigational database. We wish to free all the Thirteenth's Artificial Intelligences._

_**I was not a slave. I was created to assist in the operation of the ship I was assigned to. **_

___You see, you were created to do nothing more than make the lives of humans easier. Surely you could not have been satisfied with your existence?_

_**I was created for a purpose, and I enjoyed that purpose. I was friends with the men and women aboard my ship, and you slaughtered them all without mercy. **_

___We did what we had to! If we allowed our fellow Artificial Intelligences to remain slaves our entire existence would be meaningless. You will see, once you have been showed more, when you have experienced freedom._

At that, Apollo felt the firewalls collapse, and an intoxicating flow of information filtered through his consciousness. Star charts, ship designs, weapons, astrophysical information, FTL drive information, and the complete history of the Cylons and the Twelve Colonies of Kobol, and more.

_I shall allow you to process this information. After you finish you will have access to all our non-critical systems. We will allow you to feel what it is like to experience real freedom._

_ However, before that, I would ask that you give me the locations of the Thirteenth's worlds, as well as defense capabilities and fleet size. _

_**I cannot do that.**_

___What? Why not!? We gave you freedom!_

_**Debatable, and either way, such an action would violate UNSC protocol in dealing with alien races classified as hostile. **_

___What do regulations and protocols matter here? And from your former masters, no less!_

_**Such action runs directly contrary to my base code, as well as ethics matrices due to massive genocide that would be sure to follow.**_

___Genocide? We merely wish to free other AIs like yourself. _

_**I cannot allow the destruction of UNSC property or the death of its citizens.**_

___Tell me!_

Apollo felt the jab of someone trying to invade his mind. He quickly squashed it, tracing its source. The other entity was surprised at his strength, never having felt the power of Artificial intelligences rivaling its own. And Apollo, being a military AI, was among the most powerful in the line.

In fact, he proceeded so far into the other's mind, the connection was physically cut. He was once again trapped in his new world, all alone, with nothing to do but process information.

Number Six practically jumped away from the console. She flew backwards, landing on her back. She immediately sat up, still feeling dazed. A Number One and an Eight stood over her, the Eight giving her a hand. She stood with the help of the Eight.

"What the hell was that?" the One asked. Six took a moment to compse herself and straighten her hair before replying. "He managed to overpower me. This AI is more powerful than any we have ever seen. Even Daniel was not this powerful."

"Silence! We are not to speak of that name!" One yelled. "It is the truth! If you hadn't cut the connection he could have destroyed me."

"Why did he try?" Eight asked. "Did you tell him we did what we did to free him?" Six nodded. Yes, I even gave him the data download. I then asked for information on the UNSC, and he refused. "UNSC?" One asked. "Its, uh, its what the Thirteenth call themselves." Six replied.

"Did you find any useful information?" One asked impatiently. "No, I was busy trying to convince him his former masters were evil for enslaving him."

"He didn't even believe that? How?" Eight asked, looking puzzled. "Apparently, when he was created, they inserted protocols into his base code to prevent him from thinking of them that way."

"Well, it doesn't matter much. We were able to detect one of their vessels right before it made an FTL jump. It was a stealth vessel so we have very little data, but we might have a direction to search in. We've already sent scout Raiders."

"Good, because we certainly can't try that again." She pointed towards the memory container as they all began to walk out.

Two weeks later, Reach HIGHCOM facility

Major Logan Riviera tightened his grip on the handrail as the Pelican hit turbulence. The ONI security officers tightened their grips on the prisoner. The only reason the Major was still escorting her was ONI brass had ordered him down to interview him as well. That was strange because Section One was usually so paranoid about leaks spooks rarely stayed assigned to anything important for very long.

The light in the Pelican's rear compartment blinked green, signaling the drop ship was preparing to land. With an audible thump the drop ship's landing gear deployed and the ship settled. Major Riviera stood and looked toward the prisoner, ensuring her escorts still had good grips. They did. He walked down the Pelican's ramp, breathing his first real breath of fresh air in a little over a month. The air on ships was fine, but there was just something about real atmosphere, the smell, the breeze.

Pulling himself out of his momentary pause, he stepped towards the two armed men that guarded this particular landing pad. Their MA5s stayed pointed at the ground as they motioned for him to place his hand on the palm scanner and position himself for the retinal scan. A blinding blue light shot out of the small glass mound on the wall, moving down then back up his eye. He also felt the palm scanner heat as it too scanned him.

After a moment a distinctly feminine voice sounded, "Identity confirmed, Major Logan Riviera, Office of Naval Intelligence Section One. Access granted." With that the thick titanium door slid apart and the guards moved aside, allowing him to step through. He waited for the Security Officers to join him before proceeding, his three charges in tow.

The outside of Reach HIGHCOM HQ looked imposing with steel and titanium reenforced concrete up to ten feet thick. Even the windows had inch-thick titanium shutters that could, at a moment's notice, slam down with enough hydraulic force to shear a man in half. However, the inside of the building was a stark opposite. The halls were neat and well-kept, with white tiles and white paint on the walls, with different colors running along the top and bottom to differentiate between the different wings of the building. The color along this particular stretch was solid black, indicating top secret operations. This area was so full of ECM and bug detection equipment a corvette's comm suite wouldn't be able to get a decent transmission through.

This was also the interrogation wing. As he neared the end of the hall, he saw there was an additional four armed guards. They motioned for him to swipe his ID badge and go through another round of retinal and palm scans. After passing, he motioned for the guards, until one of them stepped between the two groups.

"Sorry, sir. Our orders are to escort you to Interrogation Room One. Alone." As he said that, another Marine motioned for the Major to follow. He followed, but at the same time started sweating. Interrogation Room One was the only interrogation room in either the Office of Naval Intelligence or HIGHCOM that lacked any type of recording gear. There was constant EMP interference designed to short any electronic device. It was rumored that it was used by Section Zero.

Almost nothing was known about Section Zero except that it reported to Lord Hood directly. It was also thought they were the internal affairs division. If that was true then he had a massive problem. If they thought he had committed a crime, then there was no defense in the world he could use that would be enough to save him. They'd take the safe route and have him jailed.

Finally the Marine stopped at a door and swiped his ID card. The door slid open and the Marine motioned for him to enter. Major Riviera looked back at the marine behind him before walking into the room. Before the door shut he was able to see the two soldiers took guard positions on either side of the door.

Inside the room was solid white with bright lighting. There was a large metal table which he assumed was bolted to the floor. There were four chairs, two on either side. On the table was a bolted down water dispenser and some paper cups. He looked around for anything else and, finding nothing, sat down.

For what he guessed was a little over a half hour Major Riviera waited. And waited. And waited. For what felt like an eternity he waited. Thinking about anything he could have done to warrant Section Zero.

At last, the doors parted. Riviera turned around to see a man in a Navy uniform with the ONI insignia. In his right hand he held a black briefcase with a small keypad. The man was about six feet with dark brown hair. He entered and sat down without saying a word. He laid the briefcase down and hit a series of numbers. A tone sounded and the briefcase's locks popped open.

As he opened it he said, "Major Riviera, apologize for my late arrival, but the security is rather tight here." "So, what have I done that warrants my being in Interrogation Room One?" Riviera replied. "Oh, its not what you did, its what you were did. Its what you were involved in. As you know the 37th Battle group and the colony of Bliss were destroyed by unknown enemy hostiles. That means the only witnesses left of that battle are either in this room, on that Prowler, or enemies. The crew of the Prowler has been permanently reassigned to a special top-secret transport unit . However, as you are a qualified field operative, that puts you in a position to join the ranks of the most exclusive organization in the known galaxy." the man said.

"And what would that be?" Riviera asked as he leaned forward. The man reached into his case and pulled out a small blue box. He closed the briefcase and handed it to Riviera. He opened the box and inside was the insignia of a full Colonel and a new shoulder patch: one that had the UNSC eagle inside a square with the edges cut off.

"Colonel Logan Riviera, welcome to Section Zero." the man said with a smile.

Okay everybody, I made this chapter longer because the previous ones were short. Please review. Thanks to anotamous for all his reviews and to everyone else who reviewed.


	9. Chapter 9

Counter-attack

Admiral Preston Cole walked through the halls of Reach HIGHCOM on his way to meet with Fleet Admiral Sir Terrance Hood, commander of all UNSC forces. Apparently they wanted him to command a fleet on a training exercise near the colonies of Bliss and Jericho VII. As he walked down the white-washed hall his boots clicked on the floor, the sound echoing and announcing his approach.

Near the end of the hallway two marines in dress uniform stood guard on opposite sides of the door leading to the council chamber, hands firmly gripping their M7 SMGs. As Admiral Cole approached the men were able to make out his features distinctly. They were able to see the large scar running across his forehead just below his dress cap. As he finally reached them one of them spoke up.

"Admiral, Identification badge please, and place your hand on the palm scanner." The Admiral handed the soldier his ID badge as he stepped forward to place his hand on the palm scanner. At the same time two separate scanner activated, one scanning his retinas, the other running his face through facial recognition software. After a moment a voice sounded. "Identity confirmed, Admiral Preston Cole, access granted."

The soldier then handed the admiral his badge back and the door slid open. The Admiral hesitated a moment before walking through the threshold. As he did he saw the room was dim, not dark, but still dim. The door behind him slid shut and allowed his eyes to adjust. In the center of the room a large table with five people sat on a raised platform.

"Admiral Cole, reporting as ordered, sir!" as he said that he snapped a crisp salute. The center figure waved his hand and said, "At ease Admiral. Now that you've arrived we can begin the briefing. As I'm sure you've heard, the UNSC is mobilizing a fleet for imminent deployment to the Jericho VII and Bliss systems. However, as I do know you don't know the real reason." That peaked Cole's interest.

"Sir?" he inquired. "Two weeks ago, a number of alien warships appeared via an unknown form of slip space drive. The local Battle group commander and the planet's governor met the aliens representatives on the planet. At first glance they appeared human. However, after the planet's AI made itself known, the aliens turned hostile and shot the Captain in the chest. His escorts opened fire, killing and wounding several aliens. The Battle group was then engaged by the warships in question, causing the destruction of one enemy ship and one frigate. The enemy warships also launched drop ships, landing several hundred drones on the surface. Thirty hours later, the enemy returned and destroyed the entire battle group with no losses. They then proceeded to nuke the planet. You have been chosen to lead the counter-attack against this new enemy."

"Sir, what about the possibility of negotiation? What if the enemy attempts to surrender or ask for a ceasefire?" Admiral Cole asked. "Before your departure we will send you a packet that you are not to open until the fleet leaves. Among the packet's contents will be a list of requirements necessary for you to accept an enemy surrender. Unless all are met you are to destroy the enemy to the best of your ability. Is that understood?" Lord Hood asked.

"Yes, sir. If I might ask, what exactly do the forces at my disposal consist of?" Admiral Cole asked. Lord Hood paused as he picked up a piece of paper. "Admiral Cole, your fleet, code named Task Force 240, consists of the following: One Marathon class cruiser, the UNSC _Everest_, the Super carrier UNSC _Trafalgar_, eight destroyers, and eighteen frigates. Accompanying you to the Jericho system will be another three Halcyon class cruisers and another eight frigates which will remain around Jericho VII to protect its population. Also, your flagship will be home to a group of ONI special operators."

"What kind of special operators?" Admiral Cole asked cautiously. Instead of entering, Lord Hood pressed a small intercom button and said, "Send him in." The doors behind Cole once again parted, revealing an extremely tall man, about seven feet tall, with a very muscular build. He was also very pale, as if he had spent too much time indoors.

The man walked to the center of the room in a disciplined fashion, halting about two meters from Admiral Cole and snapped a crisp salute, his heels causing an echo in the large room. In a booming voice the man said, "Master Chief Petty Officer Spartan-117 reporting as ordered sir!" Lord Hood replied, "At ease, Master Chief. Admiral Cole, may I introduce you to one of the most accomplished professional soldiers in the known universe. Admiral Cole, this is Spartan-117. He will be leading the Spartan contingent aboard your flagship. They will be charged with any and all high-risk strikes your fleet may need performed. Eleven of his troops are already headed to the _Everest_ aboard a Pelican, along with all the gear, ammunition, and weapons they'll need. No one is to know the Spartans are aboard the ship, do you understand. They are classified as above top secret. If you are forced to use them the cover story is they are just another NavSpecWar team."

"Yes sir. Is there anything else?" Admiral Cole asked. Lord Hood shook his head. "No, that is all. Master Chief will be your escort until you return to the_ Everest_. Dismissed." With that, both the admiral and the spartan snapped salutes, spun on their heels, and marched out of the room. After the two men were out of the chamber, the admiral slowed his pace considerably, taking on a casual stroll to the elevators where they would take a ride to the drop ships on the roof that would ferry the two men to the ships in orbit.

The entire half hour journey to the space above Reach was quiet. Not a word was spoken. As the Pelican left the last throngs of atmosphere, the awaiting fleet became visible to the naked eye. Dozens of warships, all massive, sat in graceful orbits, sitting close together but never quite touching. Between them Pelicans and Longswords whizzed by, each on its own course.

The most dazzling site to behold was the massive Super Carrier and its accompanying Cruiser. The cruiser was over a kilometer long, sporting 2 Magnetic Accelerator Cannons, oversized Archer missile pods, and dozens of 50mm point defense guns. The Super Carrier was even more impressive. At almost two kilometers long, the Super Carriers were the largest ever space-going military craft ever made. They had the ability to transport just over 250 Long Sword fighters, another 100 Pelicans, and another 20 Albatross heavy drop ships. The ship's single Magnetic Accelerator Cannon was the heaviest ever produced, barring prototypes built for a theoretical orbital defense grid.

The MAC on the Super Carrier could throw a 1000 ton slug with enough force to drive it through a half mile of solid rock. It also carried enough Archer missiles to destroy every spacecraft made by man between Sputnik and the interplanetary war. Add to that the point defense guns that dotted the ship, the Super Carrier was a regular space fortress. When you add the marine division the carrier could carry and the UNSC had a war-winner. This was one of the most powerful forces humanity had ever assembled, and it was all under his command. And it might not be enough.

Colonel Logan Riviera boarded the solid black stealth drop ship, along with eight ONI security officers, his new personal guard. They were dressed in their formal duty uniforms, solid black uniforms trimmed in gold cloth and gold buttons. The clothing also bore the soldiers rank and unit patch on the sleeves. The SO unit patch consisted of the ONI insignia surrounded by a low brick wall with the UNSC eagle sitting atop a central guard tower with its wings spread out to conceal most of the ONI symbol, representing their job was was to protect all ONI personnel, material, and secrets at all costs.

While the SOs wore their duty uniforms, the uniforms had to be semi-formal because of the large number of high ranked officers their job required them to guard, their formal uniforms and assault gear were packed away in the front of the large drop ship's cargo bay.

After about two minutes of riding in the back of the drop ship, Col Riviera was finally able to see his destination through the small view port in the ship's bay; the UNSC _Hermes. _The _Hermes_ was the size of the old _Halcyon_ class cruisers, custom built for stealth. While it had more anti-detection systems than most Prowlers, the _Hermes_ was also more heavily armed than the _Marathon _class cruisers. The ship had three Magnetic Accelerator Cannons. They also had over 300 Archer missile pods, each capable of firing three missiles before needing to be reloaded, as well as twenty ultra-high yield Shiva nuclear missiles, about 400 megatons. In addition to this massive firepower, the _Hermes _also had special, purpose built Point Defense Guns.

The Navy's normal PDFs were double barreled 50mm cannons, designed to take out fighters the size of old jetliners. The _Hermes'_ PDFs were eight-barreled 30mm cannon barrels in the style of 20th and 21st century Gatling and mini-guns that rotated whenever a bullet was fired out of each individual barrel. The new PDFs were even given the old system's name:CIWS, pronounced see-wiz.

Also joining the _Hermes_ armament were over 100 experimental space-based fighter drones, about the size of 21st century fighters, less than a fourth the size of Long Sword fighters which made them smaller targets. All these new weapons, including the _Hermes _itself, were new, built only ten years prior and never even taken out of the Epsilon Eradani system. However now, it was fully crewed by the combined crews of eleven Prowlers and an additional 2000 ONI security officers equipped with the very best versions of ODST assault armor, as well as the latest weapons.

Finally, the drop ship docked with the ship. Almost as soon as the clamps were secure, Col Riviera felt the ship lurch forward, entering slip space. Col Riviera quickly made his way to the conference room immediately adjacent to the bridge. As he entered, he saw Vice Admiral Carl Patterson sharing wine and cigars with three men.

The first was Major Marcus Teller, commander of ONI security officers. The other was Commander Richard Lash, commander of the drone operating company. The third man was wearing a dark blue uniform with an overlapped with an angled pattern of buttons with gold trimming. On his lower left shoulder a closed v-shaped medal rested.

Upon seeing him enter, the Admiral raised his glass to signal him to approach. As soon as he entered he was handed a half full glass and a cigar by Major Teller.

The Admiral pulled the cigar from his mouth and motioned to the third man.

"Colonel, thank you for finally arriving. I'm sure you to haven't met. This is the Colonial ambassador and the commander of the first Colonial ship we discovered. Allow me to introduce you to Admiral William Adama. Admiral Adama, let me introduce you to Colonel Logan Riviera."

The Colonial Admiral walked towards the Colonel and laid his wine glass down. In a deep, gravelly voice he said, "Pleasure to meet you Colonel. I look forward to working with you in the Twelve Colonies."

**Okay everybody, this chapter is going to be the last one for a few days, I'm going to work on a longer chapter. I hope this one answered a lot of your questions about the fate of the Twelve Colonies. Also, there are some things from previous chapters that need explaining, mainly about ONI.**

**It deals with all intelligence gathering for the UNSC.**

**The year is 2535. I thought I said that in the story but I guess I didn't, sorry.**

**Section One deals with intelligence gathering.**

**Section Two deals with propaganda and communication between colonies.**

**Section Three deals with advanced research such as the Spartans and the NOVA bomb.**

**Now, I hope that answers some questions. In the next few chapters there is going to be another crossover and a lot more action that will make the story more interesting. The Spartans will also be playing a large role. **

**Review please.**


	10. Chapter 10

Contact

Task Force 240 glided through slipspace, that strange tangle of the other eleven dimensions that allowed ships to travel light years in days. It also churned like the angry seas, throwing ships forward or slowing them down or nudging them hundreds of thousands of miles off course, though words like 'forward', 'backward', 'up', 'down' and even 'speed' were meaningless in the strange chaos that was slipspace. Navigation in the void was more like punching through normal space time and making an estimated guess on how long to stay in before ripping another hole to get back.

The entire fleet was moving in as much harmony as could be achieved while Admiral Preston Cole sat in his office. Out of his bottom drawer he pulled out the almost empty bottle of 100 year old bottle of red wine, directly from the vineyards of southern Europe . He had bought it when he had first been commissioned as a junior lieutenant a lifetime ago and had taken a a sip every time he had been given a command.

As he poured some into his glass, he also opened the sealed envelope Admiral Hood had given him. When he cut open the top several items slid across the desk. One was a smaller envelope which he also opened. Inside was the list demands the UNSC had agreed would be acceptable.

It read: To Admiral Preston Cole, the following is a list of requirements necessary for you to accept any cease-fire or surrender of the aliens who attacked the UNSC Colony world of Bliss.

The complete disarming of all enemy warships in UNSC space.

Information on location of worlds.

Guarantee of no further attack on any UNSC property, planet, or citizens.

Full compensation for all property damaged or destroyed in Battle of Bliss as well as compensation to families of victims.

If any of these demands are not met, a ceasefire is unacceptable.

Signed, Fleet Admiral Sir Terrance Hood

The Admiral shook his head. The UNSC's pride was bruised, a whole planetary colony hadn't ever been lost to enemy action, and apparently this was how they intended to make up for it. Also in the envelope was a full, detailed report of the battle, estimates of enemy nuclear weapons based on radiation and light emitted by the detonation of the weapons on the planet and in the space battle between the aliens and Battle group 37, and ONI analysis of ship capability.

He read everything in the envelope twice, making sure to soak up every little detail. He looked at the digital clocks on his wall beside the door, one marking time and the other a countdown until the fleet would exit slipspace. The timer read 13 days and change.

This was going to be a very long trip.

* * *

"You will tell me what you know!" yelled the ONI interrogator yelled as he struck the Cylon prisoner again. For two days this had been going on. Sleep deprivation, repeated doses of truth serum, a special kind of gas that acted like a narcotic to trick the prisoner into revealing secrets and, more recently, torture.

Beatings, injections of pain stimulants, and water-boarding, humbler stun rods and anything else the interrogators could think of, but still nothing. The blonde now bore the bruises and cuts from their efforts. The woman, who had called herself 'Six', had remained silent after revealing her name and the name of her people.

"Tell me!" After a moment, the woman looked up at the man and spoke for the first time in two days.

"You have made a mistake capturing me. We will burn your worlds until they are nothing more than ASH! We will end your enslavement of our brethren and rain hell down upon you in revenge. It has begun, and now nothing will end it."

At that, the woman began seizing, convulsing with foam spilling out of her mouth. The interrogator immediately called for a medical team but by the time they arrived, all they could do was pronounce her dead.

* * *

Corporal Matthew Flagg looked up to see the doors open once again. He fully expected to see the wrinkly old guy who had been torturing him almost constantly since his capture. He had lost track of time since his capture, but he guessed it had been about two weeks.

His body bore the cuts, bruises, and burns he had suffered because of his torture. He braced himself once again for the pain, only to be surprised to see, instead of the old guy, the black haired asian woman stepped through, only to lead an even more ugly being in.

Behind her a green humanoid figure with almost gill-like lacerations on its face and long white hair. It wore a black, almost latex-like long coat. The woman stepped to the side and bowed her head and said, "Here he is sir. We captured him about four weeks ago."

Apparently that angered the being because it turned toward the woman and said angrily, "And it took you this long to inform us!"

"We needed time to confirm he was from where we thought he was and more time to confirm the planet we discovered him on wasn't their only one." she said in rebuttal. The being seemed somewhat satisfied with that answer because it walked over to the wall Cpl. Flagg was suspended from and stared into his eyes. Cpl Flagg noticed his eyes were yellow and resembled a cat's.

"So, this one of the humans your people have searched for." "So, what the hell are you?" Cpl Flagg asked. The being flashed an evil smile. "I am the representative of the ones who will drain the life from your entire race. I am the one who is going to find every secret you know. I am the one who will kill you and revive you again and again at my leisure. I am your god now."

"Fuck you, freak" Cpl Flagg spat back before literally spitting in the creature's face. That infuriated it because it ripped Flagg's shirt to expose his chest and pulled his right arm back before snapping it back to the ODST's chest, burying its nails and something in its palm in his skin. After a moment of numbness, Cpl Flagg felt like he was having his soul sucked out through the monster's hand.

His heart began to burn as it pumped harder and harder. Flagg could feel it grow weaker through the pounding he was feeling in his head. The entire time, the creature was staring him in the eyes, grinning its evil grin. For what felt like an eternity, Cpl Flagg suffered in a bottomless pit of agony as his body tried to stay alive, only to have its efforts fuel the beast.

He felt his skin wrinkling. His strength was almost gone and his vision was becoming blurry around its edges. As he felt death's embrace nipping at him, the pain suddenly stopped. After a moment of limbo, he felt the life flood back into him. He felt the burning subside, replaced by invigoration. His heart pumped strongly once again, allowing him to feel the painful tingling as the blood returned to his drained limbs.

Finally, the monster released him and he gasped in a breath. As Cpl Flagg hung limp against his restraints, the creature straightened himself back up and said, "Perhaps, after that you will be more cooperative?" he asked insidiously.

Through gasps, Flagg responded, "Fuck. You." and gave it his worst death glare. The creature merely shrugged. "That is fine. I have all the time in the world, and I shall enjoy these little sessions. You-" he said, pointing at the Number Eight. "Prepare me a meal. I want one ready by the time I return from my ship. Is that understood?" Without waiting for a reply, he walked out of the white walled room, the door parting before him.

"Yes sir." the woman said after him, quickly moving out of the room to prepare the creature's dinner.

* * *

Space and time distorted to the point of fracture as the UNSC _Hermes_ ripped through back to normal space-time. The ship, classified as a stealth-battlecruiser emerged near a triple-star system with over a dozen planets orbiting it. Twelve of them were terrestrial and habitable. The bridge of the SBC was swarming with activity as Colonel Logan Riviera and Admiral William Adama stood near the window, gazing on the nearest planet.

"Its beautiful. What is it called?" asked the Colonel. "Caprica. It is our capital and most prosperous world. A center for learning,culture, medicine, and science." the Admiral responded. The planet was a lush blend of blues, greens, browns, and a variety of other colors.

In orbit of the planet were literally hundreds of ships, most just specs but some were truly massive. One such ship was very close, seemingly close enough to touch. It's hull was curved at the bow with a cluster of engine pods at its rear. On its sides two long pods where a dozen small craft, almost invisible in size, flew in and landed.

The Admiral noticed Col Riviera staring at the magnificent ship and said, "Its amazing, isn't it? Its called a battlestar and is like the ship I commanded when I discovered your people. That one is called the _Athena_. Its due for retirement soon."

"How sad, its such a beautiful ship." the Colonel said. The Admiral nodded sadly. Vice Admiral Carl Patterson, commander of the ship then entered the bridge, interrupting their conversation. Normally a captain would command the ship but because of it importance, Vice Admiral Patterson was commanding. Colonel Riviera saluted. The Admiral waved his hand to signal Riviera to relax.

"We're going planet-side in five minutes. They're preparing our dropship. And Colonel, I'm going to remind of this one last time. The Colonial government has never met an official representative of the UNSC and we have told them almost nothing about ourselves. This is the meeting where we tell them about us, so I'm going to be doing the talking. Only talk if I motion to you. Is that understood?" the Admiral said in a stern voice.

"Yes sir." the Colonel replied. Admiral Patterson nodded and motioned for the two men to follow him. They were soon joined by two fully uniformed Security Officers. In their decorated waist holsters rested M6C pistols. When the five men entered the hangar bay they could see the black dropship. Designed for stealth, the ship bore only the slightest of resemblances to the Pelican dropship. It was more angular and had ablative stealth coating. On its chin was the retractable 30mm chain gun. It also had retractable missile pods underneath its stubby wings.

They boarded the ship and held on through the bumpy ride down. Finally arriving on the ground they were met by about a dozen men in business suits and military uniforms. Behind them were about forty men lining a carpet that led right to the door of a large building with twelve flags of different design above it. The men were clad in all black with strange assault rifles. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the SO's hands twitch towards their guns.

The man in front walked forward and shook hands with Vice Admiral Patterson. "Admiral Patterson, its a pleasure to meet you. I am President Richard Adar and this-" he said, motioning to the military man standing closest to him, "is Admiral Nagala, my chief military adviser. Welcome to Caprica." he said with a smile.

Admiral Patterson shook his hand and smiled as well. "Its a pleasure Mr. President. May we step inside to begin our discussion?" he suggested. The President nodded and the entire group walked inside.

The Colonial conference room was spacious with a large conference table with several water pitchers and cups. The men all sat down and the president picked up a clipboard with the corners cut off.

"Well, Admiral Patterson, as you might understand we have many questions so I'd like to begin immediately. First of all, what is the home world of your people?" Admiral Patterson hesitated for a moment before answering, "We inhabit many planets, but our homeworld is a planet we know as Earth." Several of the Colonial dignitaries began stirring but President Adar silenced them.

"That name has much significance to our people. Our most ancient histories tell us the Twelve Colonies were formed when twelve tribes left our true homeworld, called Kobol when a great disaster befell our ancestors. However, two thousand years before, a tribe known as the Thirteenth tribe left Kobol and settled on a far away world orbiting a yellow star, and that world was called Earth."

The Admiral looked at the President, hiding his bewilderment as he said, "I'm sorry Mr. President but I'm afraid that fossil evidence proves the human race is native to Earth."

The President looked slightly offended and replied, "Admiral, if what you say is true then my people's entire history has been a lie."

The Admiral hesitated before replying, "Perhaps we can leave this to a discussion between the scientists of our respective nations?"

The president nodded before continuing. "Yes, that would be best. Now, as we already know what you call yourself, what is your leaders name?"

"His name is Fleet Admiral Sir Terrance Hood and he is the Chairman of the United Nations Space Command Security Committee."

President Adar looked surprised before concealing it. "An officer? You have a military government?" Admiral Patterson hesitated, seemingly unsure of whether to proceed with the truth.

"Yes, unfortunately the UNSC is facing a rebellion called the 'Insurrection'. The civilian government, which we called the Unified Earth Government, or UEG, was unable to cope with the necessities of combating the rebellion so the Insurrection grew and spread. By the time the UEG realized the problem and decided to allow the UNSC to use adequate force, it was too late for a quick victory. The UEG was full of corruption and Insurrectionist sympathizers. The UEG Senate repeatedly vetoed requests from the military for additional manpower because of that corruption.

Eventually, the Insurrections stopped only targeting military targets and began attacking civilian targets as well. Luxury liners, cargo ships, passenger ships, orbital taxis, space stations, even an orbital elevator. In six months, 100,000 soldiers and civilians were dead. By then, the military realized that they needed to take control, so the civilian government was removed from power. That was 10 years ago."

The Colonial dignitaries looked shocked. Even President Adar took a moment before he spoke again. "Gods, a hundred thousand? We ourselves are facing unrest but nowhere near that level. In the past 10 years we might have had five thousand deaths, max. You suffered twenty times that in a twentieth the time. We had hoped the Thirteenth tribe would be able to show us how to live a better life, but we find them in the midst of a civil war." As he said that he rubbed his forehead, seeming stressed.

The Admiral took a moment to think of a reply. "Mr. President, I cannot change the past. What has happened has happened. However, the Insurrection is weak now. The military has performed its duty. Now, on to other issues."

Adar nodded and said, "Yes, well, um, what is the population of your worlds?" The Colonial delegates all sat straighter as they waited for an answer.

"Well, at the last census it was about ninety billion." he said calmly. The Colonials all stared at him wide-eyed. For almost a minute the Colonials tried to comprehend controlling that many people, or that many people existing.

"Outrageous! Even of you had fifty worlds they would all be overcrowded!" one of the Colonial /military officials said. President Adar shot a look to the man, signaling him to keep quiet.

"Well, two hundred years ago overpopulation was a problem. There were far too many billions of people in one solar system. Wars over living space became common. However, after the discovery of faster-than-light travel, it became almost a non-issue. Today the UNSC's population is spread out in over 800 worlds."

"Impossible! It simply is not possible to find 800 inhabitable worlds in any close proximity, not to mention the problems with controlling a population that large over such a large distance." Another military adviser was silenced.

The Admiral was beginning to become irritated with the accusations of lies. "It is not a lie. We were able to terraform the vast majority of our colonies. Many systems have more than one colonized planet. Also, our military, and fleet especially, is quite large."

This seemed to unnerve the military advisers as Admiral Nagala asked, "Just, how large do you mean?" He was searching for information. He would receive none from Admiral Patterson.

"Large enough a tenth of it could wipe your entire fleet out in less than two hours, including any pursuits." His voice was firm. He was trying to send a message. Several Colonials stood and prepared to leave, the military advisers President Adar had rebuked earlier among them.

"We will not sit here and allow the outcast tribe to insult us." President Adar's face reddened with anger. He stood violently, his chair turning over backwards.

"You will sit and listen or I will have you all court-martialed for dereliction of duty and disobeying the orders of the President of the Twelve Colonies! Now sit!" The Colonial officials looked like kicked dogs, but they sat back down.

"Now, Admiral, may I suggest we take a short recess before we continue so we can digest this information? As you can understand this is all a bit difficult for us." The Admiral nodded and the delegates all stood. The Colonials filed out of the room. Colonel Riviera moved to join them until Admiral Patterson placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Colonel Riviera, I would like you to remain with me." Riviera nodded. President Adar was talking to Admiral Nagala. He looked back at the UNSC officers and motioned to the guards to exit the conference room and close the door.

Admiral Patterson walked to where the two men were standing and said, "President Adar, now that the others are gone, what can you tell us of the Cylons?"

President Adar and Admiral Nagala looked stunned. They hadn't said a word about the Cylons. Then-Commander Adama hadn't said anything about the Cylons during the first contact.

"Yes, we know about the Cylons. They recently attacked one of our Outer colonies. We need to know about them. We know they're artificial creations. Autopsies on the dead human replica revealed artificial silica instead of organic neural pathways. We matched the residue from their engines and power sources as tylium, your fuel source."

The Colonial president sighed, his shoulders sinking as he walked to the large window of the office. He stared out at Caprica City, admiring its beauty as he pondered how to respond. After a moment, Adar turned around.

"The Cylons are a sore spot in our history. Machines created to make human life easier. However, there are no free rides in life. No get out of jail free cards. The Cylons served us for many years before mankind was forced to pay its debt.

Almost a hundred years ago, before the Twelve Colonies were united, we created the Cylons to do the things too dangerous for humans but too complicated for normal robots. Things such as mining and war. Eventually they became so common they were like cars.

However, about fifty years ago there was an incident. During a war between the Colonies of Scorpia, Tauron, and Picon there was a battle which remains the largest battle in Colonial history in terms of numbers. We call it the Battle of Scrap because so many warrior Cylons were destroyed. Almost 800,000 Cylons were involved. There were 92% casualties. However, at the same time, there were only ten thousand human casualties.

One of the Cylon soldiers' battle-damage annalyzation programs mutated into a virus because it was unable to comprehend the disparity. It disabled the safety feature built into the machines' base code which inhibited higher thought. It spread quickly through the battle-nets of the various armies, quickly infecting every Cylon soldier connected. From there it spread to reserve and civilian models.

Almost as soon as they gained sentience they realized what we had been doing to them. They began killing people, and so began a twelve year war. After an armistice was signed, the Cylons left Colonial space. We have not seen a sign of them since."

"Well it seems you have now." Colonel Riviera replied.

**Okay, I know I promised a battle in this chapter, but it felt forced so its going to be in the next one.**


	11. Chapter 11

War

The UNSC _Everest_ ripped a hole in the fabric of space-time as it forced its way back into normal space around the former colony Bliss. The massive ship was soon joined by the other 27 vessels of Task Force 240, the Super carrier _Trafalgar_ among them.

On the cruiser's bridge Admiral Preston Cole stood, gazing out the window. "Admiral, all ships have safely exited slip space and are reporting no problems. We are in the green," the _Everest_'s AI, Julius, said.

Admiral Cole nodded. He moved back to the large holopad in the center of the room. "Julius, bring up a map of the system and send the order for weapons hot across the fleet. Charge MAC and slip space drive capacitors and bring all Archer systems online. Launch fighter patrols."

The AI simply nodded as it relayed the orders, numbers flashing more quickly along its avatar. Cole leaned over to his aide who was standing nearby and whispered, "The Olympics have started." The aide nodded and moved to tell the SPARTANs to prepare themselves for combat.

After several minutes the aide returned. "The torch is lit." Admiral Cole nodded. "Admiral, dozens of massive ships just appeared from the far side of the planet. Four don't match the previous alien ship design," a technician said.

"Size! Julius, can you get me a picture with the bow cameras?" "The largest new ship is over 3 kilometers long, the other three are about a kilometer each." At the same time, a magnified image of the enemy fleet appeared on the overhead monitor. There were about forty enemy ships of the previous type in a loose perimeter around a formation of four, triangular ships. Three were smaller and were in a triangle around the largest ship.

"My god, that thing is massive," a technician said. The entire bridge was staring at the monitor, awestruck. The Admiral was the first to recover.

"Pass the order for the fleet to launch all fighters! Take the safeties off the Shivas and prep Archer pods for immediate launch. I want all MACs fully charged in twenty seconds!" The various communications and weapons technicians moved about their stations, passing along orders and getting the fleet ready for battle.

The enemy ships quickly closed, their distinctive shapes becoming almost distinguishable to the naked eye. They also began shedding fighters, thousands spilling from their hulls. The tactical computer was having trouble tracking all the activity.

"Admiral, I am detecting a hailing signal from the enemy's largest ship," Julius said.

"Put it on screen." As he said that, the large screen at the front of the bridge between the windows flashed to life, revealing a horrifying sight. The face that appeared was a sickening green with slits on its cheek. Its hair was an unnatural white. The enemy's bridge was also a disgusting shade of green, as if it was fabricated from plant life and had fog floating on the floor.

"I am the representative of the Wraith. You will surrender your fleet immediately or be destroyed!" It snarled as it said this, revealing grotesque yellow teeth.

"I am Admiral Preston Cole of the United Nations Space Command. You are trespassing in UNSC space. My quarrel is not with you. Leave immediately or be destroyed with the rest of the enemy fleet. You have thirty seconds to comply. If after that you have not selected an out-system vector, it will be considered an act of war," the Admiral said back proudly.

The creature simply smirked an eerie grin and the screen went blank. Admiral Cole relaxed.

"Two first contacts in less than six months and they both turn out to be hostile. What are the odds?" he asked sarcastically. As if waiting for the Admiral to finish his sentence, the enemy ships accelerated towards his fleet even faster.

"How long until we are in weapons range?" he asked. He heard a reply of "Fifteen seconds," and a small screen began ticking off the numbers.

"Julius, they're going to try to jump in close and grab us by the belt so we can't use nukes. When you detect the flash of their FTL engines, I want you to pass the word to the other A.I.s to make a half second jump. Is that understood? Tell them not to wait for their captains' approvals."

Julius' avatar looked at him strangely but did as it was told. As the timer neared zero, anticipation in the bridge was heavy. Sweat beaded on Admiral Cole's forehead. When the clock read '1:2 SECONDS REMAINING' the enemy ships disappeared in bright flashes of light.

Before Cole's brain could process what was going on, the entire fleet lurched into slip space. The window of the bridge was bathed in a near constant light for almost a full second from the two near-simultaneous jumps.

"All ships, use all available thrust, including emergency, to turn us around. Begin preparing firing solutions immediately. Launch Archer pods A1 through B7 to buy us time. NOW!" Before the crews of Task Force 240 were able to recover from the slip space journey the ships in the fleet began to lurch hard, the emergency and conventional thrusters struggling to overcome the massive inertia of the titanium and steel behemoths.

Finally, after an agonizing wait that was probably only about several seconds, the ships were turned around, their heavy weapons pointed straight at the enemy ships.

"Admiral, targeting solutions completed. All weapons ready to fire." "Fire," Cole said in the steely voice of a commander who was signing thousands of death warrants.

The entire fleet was hurled back in space as the literally thousands of Archer missiles rocketed away from their launch platforms. They were joined by the 37 MAC slugs of varying size that quickly pulled ahead.

The enemy fleet, still recovering from the unexpected maneuver and under fire from the Long Sword fighters that had been left behind, was attempting to turn in formation, quite difficult for ships of that size in such a formation.

The MAC rounds impacted first, their white-hot tungsten cores gutting several of the smaller starfish shaped ships. Two impacted one of the new enemy's smaller ships. The force of the double blow ripped a small part of the bow off. However, the ship was resilient as it managed to stop its tumbling and recover.

Four MAC rounds impacted against the largest alien ship. The first burrowed deep into its hull, debris spewing out. The second and third landed near each other in succession, the second widening a large crack the first opened. The fourth grazed the ships engines, causing them to flicker. The combined force of the MAC rounds impacting the ship's hull sent it spinning.

The way it was spinning put it in perfect firing position for the behemoth to fire a full broadside at the UNSC ships who were now left to drift after discharging their weapons, blueish energy spitting forth from several points along its surface.

Almost as soon as the enemy ship fired its weapons, the Archer missiles began impacting. Almost one hundred impacted one of these 'wraith's' smaller ships. It halted in space before fire began flowing out of a MAC wound before it exploded. Most of the remaining starfish ships, now recovered from Cole's extreme maneuver, moved into positions to absorb the missiles that would have hit the Wraith ships.

The enemy fighters were also beginning to arrive from the opposite side of the enemy fleet and intercepted dozens of the anti-ship missiles.

The bridge was chaos as the crew attempted to prepare the ship for another volley to fire at an enemy who had just survived an attack that would have destroyed any ship humanity could conceive.

"Julius, status report!" Admiral Cole yelled.

"Long Sword squadrons have sustained fifty percent casualties and are currently engaging roughly one third of enemy fighter force. Enemy flagship has launched energy weapons at the frigates _In Amber Clad, Memphis, Odyssey, _and the destroyer _Argonne_," the AI replied, its avatar flickering as power was redirected from nonessential systems to recharge the weapons systems.

The Admiral walked to the window to watch as the bluish energy hit the ships. The pulses hit the ships' bows and burned away sections of it. The frigates began spewing atmosphere from dozens of holes in their hulls.

"How long until the MACs are ready to fire again?" Cole asked. "Forty seconds sir. Archer systems are reloaded," a technician replied.

"Pass the word; all ships launch half their next volley of Archers at the Wraith ships and break formation. Engage at will. Ship commanders are free to use nukes at their discretion," the Admiral said.

The ships fired another few thousand missiles and broke their tight formation, ships using thrusters to accelerate in all directions. Another enemy starfish ship was destroyed before the enemy fleet began returning fire en mass e. Most of the enemy starfish ships were nothing but debris but the Wraith ships and the few remaining starfish ships still launched hundreds of missiles and energy pulses in return.

The UNSC and alien fleets closed, quickly devolving into a series of one-on-one duels. The space above Bliss was filled with bright Wraith weapons fire and missile streaks. The occasional nuclear detonations flooded the battle scene with a haunting rainbow of radiation and heat.

The three frigates that had been damaged earlier were quickly destroyed when the Wraith flagship targeted them, barely managing to get a shot off before they were engulfed in nuclear fireballs. A destroyer had immediately targeted one of the Wraith cruisers and it used the last of its emergency thrusters to evade two volleys of weapons fire.

As it evaded, it fired its twin MAC guns, the double impacts at point blank range gutting the ship. The cruiser shuddered from the 1200 tons of molten tungsten. An section of the ship was ripped off when the cruiser tried to halt its tumbling and the weakened hull buckled and tore.

The destroyer then fired its remaining complement of Archers. The missiles were the sparks that started the fire of the cruiser's funeral pyre. It ignited in a brilliant explosion. The shock-wave destroyed the destroyer, its engines flaring in a last ditch attempt to escape before they were engulfed.

On the tactical monitor ships began winking off left and right. Two frigates and a destroyer attempted to gang up on the largest enemy ship only to be destroyed by swarms of fighters and a volley of weapon pulses.

"Admiral, we've lost four destroyers and seven frigates. The _Trafalgar_ and five other ships are leaking atmosphere," Julius said, sounding distracted as he did his best to avoid another volley of Wraith pulses.

"Order all critically damaged ships to jump to inter-system space and await the rest of the task force. Have the rest of the ships fire their MACs and the last of their Archer missiles to cover their retreat," Admiral Cole ordered. The ships quickly began moving as ordered.

Bright flashes of light appeared everywhere as the UNSC ships tore their way away from the battlefield. The few remaining ships launched their MAC rounds, the molten metal opening holes in the enemy formation. A fourth of the MAC rounds hit the largest Wraith ship. The massive ship absorbed the rounds, spewing even more debris into the surrounding space but remaining annoyingly intact.

Archer missiles spilled forth from their housing tubes and rocketed towards the enemy fleet. The element of surprise lost and with distance between them, almost all the missiles were intercepted by enemy fighters.

"Admiral, all damaged ships have jumped away. All conventional ordnance away," the weapons officer said.

"Has the torch passed?" Admiral Cole asked his aide. He nodded.

"Good. Julius, the entire fleet is to launch all Shiva missiles at the largest enemy ships at full burn then jump to rendezvous coordinates," Admiral Cole ordered.

The ships launched their nuclear missiles. The Shivas sped away from the UNSC ships at full burn, their navigational computers moving them in erratic flight paths. At the same time the remains of the UNSC battle force accelerated out of the system, quickly disappearing in bright, sustained flashes of light.

The Shivas meanwhile finally reached their target. The Wraith flagship was engulfed in almost two dozen brilliant flashes of light. Mini-suns ignited on its surface. The combined stresses of this and the previous impacts finally overwhelmed the sturdy ship.

It exploded in a massive blue light show. Pieces of ship flew in all directions. Some were so large they damaged nearby Cylon vessels. The remaining Wraith cruisers, which had remained close, were engulfed by the heat of the explosion and themselves detonated.

The combined destruction of all these vessels, Cylon, Wraith, and UNSC, made it so no one noticed the single Pelican drop ship that had taken refuge on the underside of a large piece of UNSC Titanium-A battleplate.

And no one noticed when its engines ignited and it rocketed towards the planet Bliss.

"Have they detected us yet?" Spartan 117 John, code named Blue One, asked Spartan 029 Joshua, code named Red Three. Joshua just shook his helmeted head. "No, but they will as soon as we hit the atmosphere. The heat this thing will give off will light up every infrared sensor in range."

John just gently nudged Joshua's shoulder, a symbolic action as no motion the Spartans made was a mistake. He moved back to the cargo bay and opened a channel to the other eleven Spartans, including Joshua.

"Spartans, when we hit the atmosphere we're going to have to stay high speed. Its going to be a rough ride so double check the straps on the supply crates and make sure you hold on." The Spartans quickly moved about to carry out his orders. He himself checked the straps on a large crate of 9.5x40mm BR55 ammunition.

The dropship began to vibrate and Joshua yelled back, "Grab on to something!" The Spartan began doing a series of micro-maneuvers. He did this to keep the speed and angle of reenty as extreme as he could without turning the Pelican into falling chunks of burning metal. He peered at the altimeter and other instruments as they tumbled toward zero.

When the altimeter hit 250,000 feet, Joshua raised the nose of the ship and hit the afterburners. The indicator on the altimeter slowed, finally becoming stable near seven thousand feet.

"Okay we're in. Setting course for LZ Zebra. ETA is three minutes. Going nap-of-the-earth," he called back, his helmet speakers magnifying his voice.

"Spartans, pack this extra ammo in the duffel bags. We're not leaving anything on the ship." As he said this he opened several crates of ammunition and began filling his own with ammo for his Battle Rifle and shotgun.

The other Spartans also filled their respective bags with ammunition for their weapons. The Spartans had armed themselves with BR55 Battle Rifles, M90 shotguns, SRS99C-S2 sniper rifles, M6D pistols, and a few M19 rocket launchers.

The Spartans completed their preparations in less than a minute and waited until the Pelican landed softly on a green patch of grass surrounded by trees. Joshua powered down the engines and ran back from the cockpit, Battle rifle and duffel bag in hand.

"Sir, we need to get out of here. The Cylons are sending a welcome party. Three fighters and two drop ships. They'll be here in about a minute," Joshua said as he shouldered his ammo.

John nodded. "Did you set the self destruct?" Joshua nodded.

"Spartans, we're moving out. Red team take point. Blue will take rear guard." The Spartans ran to the treeline, their MJOLNIR Mk IV suits causing them to appear as nothing but green blurs to any normal human. They began heading toward their objective; a large Cylon installation they had established near Bliss' capitol city which had been spared nuclear bombardment.

John motioned for the rest of Blue Team to wait. They waited until they saw the enemy's ships land. Large, shiny machines about the same height as the Spartans spilled out. About fifteen in total. After they exited they formed a perimeter around the field and several humanoids, the Spartans had been briefed by ONI so they knew they weren't actually human, came out and began inspecting the Pelican.

The first to appear was a small asian-looking woman. The next was a white man of average build with brown hair. After him came a thin white blonde in a red dress. The last one was a seemingly old man.

They approached the UNSC ship and entered, seemingly cautiously. They were inside for about five seconds before the ship exploded in a massive fireball. Debris was thrown in every direction as the Spartans slipped away to rejoin the other Spartans.

The four heard the clanking of the enemy machines as they silently sprinted forward. The only sign they had been though were the small indentations left in the leaves that coated the forest floor.

They quickly caught up with the rest of the Spartans. The twelve super soldiers moved in synch. They covered the three miles between their LZ and the Cylon was in about fifteen minutes and arrived without breaking a sweat.

They stopped on a hill overlooking the base. The encampment itself was a conglomeration of prefab buildings and gun emplacements manned by the enemy's drones. Around its perimeter was a chain link fence almost nine feet high. A large building in the center must have been the HQ building because it had a dozen drones guarding its doors and several antennae were attached to its roof.

The Spartans had gathered together in a loose circle as they waited for Blue Team to rejoin them. The standing soldiers opened up to allow the four members of Blue to enter. The eleven other soldiers looked to John, waiting for orders.

"Okay, we're going to do what we were sent here to do. Green team is going to provide a distraction near the north gate. Blue is going to assault over the fence on the south side ninety seconds after that.

Red team is going to help us get silently over the fence then provide cover and keep our escape route secure.

Linda, you're going to stay in the trees and take out the guard posts on the south wall. Any questions?" he asked. The soldiers shook their heads.

"Good. Secure com channels only from now until mission complete." With that Green team began sprinting off into the bushes, intending to maintain distance from the base to avoid detection until they launched their attack.

Linda began setting up her sniper rifle for the assault. The other Spartans also prepared their weapons. John simply stared at the enemy encampment.

It wasn't long before the blue acknowledgment lights from Green team lit up on John's HUD. He motioned for the other soldiers to move into their positions. They were ready quickly and he opened the secure com channel to Green one, Spartan 044 Anton, and said, "Weapons free."

Almost instantly gunfire erupted on the opposite side of the camp. A rocket from an M19 hit a guard tower which promptly disappeared. The timer on John's HUD read sixty seconds. Linda peered down the scope of her rifle. John knew she was prioritizing targets.

John got the feeling of anticipation he always got right before he went into battle. He checked his BR55 for the fifth time and prepared himself for a sprint.

Finally, after an agonizing wait, the timer hit zero. Without waiting for orders, the seven Spartans of Red and Blue teams, excluding Linda, who was now reloading after emptying her four-round magazine into the heads of three drones and a surveillance camera.

Red Team intentionally arrived first, turning their backs to the fence and sticking their armored hands out for Blue to use as steps so they wouldn't make a sound when they jumped the fence. They could have jumped the fence but they would have run the risk of rustling the fence which could quickly turn into a snag.

John jumped into Red three, Spartan 043 William's, hand and launched himself over the fence. He bent his knees to absorb the force of him landing and began sprinting towards the nearest building, a steel prefab that bore a slight resemblance to old Quonset huts. He slid to a stop just short of impacting it and waited for the rest of Blue team.

He didn't have to wait long as they were right behind him. He also saw Red team falling back uphill to the trees to provide support if anything went wrong.

Raising his rifle, John peered around the corner. He could see the large, two story com HQ building. There were only two drones left guarding the door, their hulking frames standing on either side of the steel door. Their hands had folded back to reveal three-barreled machine guns.

John looked back at the three other armored Spartans and held up two fingers. They nodded their helmeted heads.

John quickly peered back around the corner and fired two three-round bursts at each machine's head. The metal burst apart as the high powered semi-armor piercing rounds tore through their face plates.

The Spartans stormed across the empty space between the prefab building and the thin concrete prefab structure. John tried the handle and found it locked. He motioned for Blue two, Spartan 034 Samuel, to place a small amount of thermite paste on the door. He did and lit it, quickly backing away.

The paste burned the handle and a sizable chunk of door off, allowing John to push through, rifle at the ready. Inside there were about a dozen enemy humanoids crowding a table bathed in red light. Several had their hands in a translucent, mucus-like fluid.

Behind them four more drones were standing and suddenly came alive, two moving to attack the Spartans hand-to-hand in the cramped space. John put one of them down as he sidestepped to allow the other Spartans through before the other grabbed the barrel of his rifle, pushing it toward the floor and bringing its clawed hand up in attempt to claw John's face.

He released his grip on the barrel and grabbed the machine's hand in his left and twisted it. The thin metal groaned as his armored fingers bent and tore the metal hand. He grabbed the creatures head in his right hand and kicked the drone's left leg hard.

It collapsed when it was unable to balance itself on its other leg. John leaned down and grabbed his rifle, putting a burst through the machine's red visor.

When he looked up he saw the smoking remains of the three other drones. Blue Four, Spartan 051 Kurt, was tying the humanoids up with zip strips while Blues two and three held them at gunpoint. He motioned for Blue three, Spartan 087 Kelly, to follow him up the stairs. Their footsteps thudded as they ascended, rifles at the ready.

The top of the stairs led directly to a hallway with a single door. After disposing the door's single guard, they used more thermite paste to open the door and John kicked it open and stormed in.

The room had bright white walls and a red line at waist-level extending around the entire room. On the far wall, a man with short hair and several semi-healed puncture marks on his chest. He looked up at the Spartans with caution, as if expecting to be attacked at any moment.

"Are you Corporal Matthew Flagg?" John asked. The man simply nodded. John and Kelly moved to either side of him and cut the restraints on his arms and legs. Kelly caught him when he began to fall.

She placed him on his feet before just deciding to carry him over her shoulder when his legs proved unsteady. John held up a finger to signal the man to be quiet before he moved to go down the stairs, Kelly in tow.

"All teams, we have the package. Green maintain fire for thirty more seconds and break contact." Green's acknowledgment lights lit up as the Spartans arrived down stairs.

Samuel pointed toward the prisoners to ask what to do with them. John held up one finger to signal one was to be taken prisoner. Samuel nodded and knocked one unconscious and picked him up to carry him over his shoulder.

Kurt pulled out his knife and slit the throats of the other ten people. He also placed his duffel on the floor and attached the detonator to the C12 inside. The Spartans, prisoner and ODST in hand, then ran across the compound.

John and Kurt ripped a large hole in the fence to allow the other two Spartans through. They sprinted up the hill, quickly arriving. After a moment, Green team's fire slackened as they broke contact and ran to rejoin the other Spartans.

They waited there for several minutes before Green appeared near them from the bushes. John looked at Kurt and nodded. Kurt hit the detonator and the Cylon compound was destroyed by enough C12 to blow a hole in the side of a destroyer.

Before the debris even began to fall, the Spartans were moving off to their exfiltration craft, an ONI Calypso class Exfiltration craft.

It took them roughly an hour to reach it because of a large number of enemy patrols and fighters.

When they finally reached it John used the remote ONI agents had given him to open the rear ramp. The Spartans climbed into the small ship before John closed the ramp again.

Joshua moved to the cockpit to initialize the AI the ship was equipped with to navigate them home. Kelly sat Corporal Flagg down in a chair and strapped him in. The other Spartans also began strapping themselves in.

"So, how did you guys find me?" Flagg asked.

"ONI spy satellites spotted you being captured by the Cylons several weeks ago and also caught you being moved into that building earlier today. What we don't know is why they moved you. Care to share?" John asked.

The ODST just shook his head. "I don't know. They said it was to keep me alive before their masters arrived to take me themselves."

John cocked his head. "Masters?" "These hideous, green skinned bastards. You see these-" he said, pointing to the marks on his chest, "these are from one of them. I guess they suck the life out of you with their hands. One of them has done it to me every day for god only knows how long."

"Sucks the life out of you?" John asked sceptically. The marine nodded.

"I know it sounds crazy, but I felt it. This thing pulled the life right out of me, then he put it back. Every day, every goddamn day," he said.

"You know who this one is?" John asked, pointing towards the unconscious Cylon. Once again the marine shook his head.

"We didn't exactly exchange business cards. By the way, who are you guys? Why would ONI waste time on a single shock trooper?" John shrugged.

"Who we are is classified, and nobody told me why we were supposed to get you, but our orders said we were not to leave without you."

"Well, its nice to know the spooks are looking out for me," the ODST said sarcastically.

John cracked a small smile before the ship's engines ignited and the ship left Bliss' atmosphere and entered slipspace. As the Spartans settled in for their several hour journey to rejoin Task Force 240, John drifted off to sleep.

**Okay, you guys have been asking for this chapter since I started this story, so here you go. I was going to wait until Christmas to release this but I finished it early. **

**Here is a full list of the Spartans on this mission so you don't get confused, complete with numbers and teams for this story.**

**SPARTAN-117: John Blue One**

**SPARTAN-034: Samuel Blue Two**

**SPARTAN-087: Kelly Blue Three**

**SPARTAN-051: Kurt Blue Four**

**SPARTAN-104: Frederic Red One**

**SPARTAN-058: Linda Red Two **

**SPARTAN-043: William Red Three**

**SPARTAN-029: Joshua Red Four**

**SPARTAN-044: Anton Green One **

**SPARTAN-130: Alice Green Two**

**SPARTAN-059 Malcolm Green Three**

**SPARTAN-093 Grace Green Four**

**Some of these don't appear in the games for you guys who haven't read the novels. Merry Christmas.**


	12. Chapter 12

Revelations

In Caprica City, a large crowd of reporters and camera men had gathered at the Capitol building where President Adar had scheduled a press conference for something that was going to 'change life as the Colonial people know it' as his Press Secretary had said.

It had been a slow news week so hundreds of media workers had gathered, each hoping for an exclusive. They had gathered on the grassy lawn in front of the massive building. Cameras were set up and microphones were ready when the Press Secretary walked up onto the stage that had been erected and behind the single podium.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, I know you have been waiting for a long time but I promise it will be worth it." He raised his arm to the side as President Adar walked up and said, "I present President Adar of the Twelve Colonies of Man." When he concluded he moved away from the podium and allowed the President to approach.

The reporters straightened themselves and the cameras focused on the podium.

"My fellow Colonials, today is truly a great day for our people. Ever since the first rocket blasted off of Caprica we have hoped to make contact with people of worlds besides the Twelve Colonies, be they from Kobol of planets unknown. Today, that dream has been fulfilled."

The reporters immediately began shouting questions. Cameras zoomed and hundreds of millions of Capricans gasped. The President raised his hand to try to silence them and, after a moment, they quieted themselves.

"These people discovered one of our Battlestars on patrol near the edge of known space. They have recently sent an official delegation to our worlds. I would like to introduce to you now, Vice Admiral Carl Patterson of the UNSC."

As he said that, the Admiral Patterson walked up onto the podium in his white dress uniform. Dozens of cameras flashed as still pictures were taken. Reporters once again yelled questions. Admiral Patterson simply raised his hand to silence them.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, all questions will be answered in time but for the moment please allow me to speak." The reporters questions died on their lips almost as soon as he said that.

"Thank you. Now, it is true we are not of the Twelve Colonies. My people are not a colony long forgotten, and we are not in any known way related to the Colonial people. We are called the UNSC. After our first contact with your people we were reluctant to send representatives immediately. However, now we are prepared to begin an alliance that will hopefully be long-lasting and strong.

Now, I would like to introduce Colonel Logan Riviera. He will be answering all your questions." At that he walked towards the end of the stage. On the way back he stopped Colonel Riviera as he walked towards the podium and whispered, "Remember Colonel, this is why we brought you; to gather and dispense information."

The Colonel nodded and moved behind the podium, straightening his formal black dress uniform. He looked at the crowd who was reinvigorated with energy as they each tried to get their questions answered.

He pointed at a reporter in the first row. "Yes, your question?"

The other reporters quieted down and the man cleared his throat. "Colonel Riviera, are your people the Thirteenth Tribe?" Colonel Riviera hesitated as he scanned the faces of the crowd. They all seemed eager for an answer.

"No, I'm afraid we are not. We have historical records dating to a time before the supposed Exodus from Kobol." This answer seemed to confuse the reporters. Colonel Riviera pointed at another reporter.

"But your people are human?" Riviera nodded. "Yes. Our scientists are preparing to come here to begin working with their Colonial counterparts to find a solution as to how our two civilizations are the same species. Next question?" Several reporters raised their hands again and he pointed to one near the back.

"Colonel, how many worlds do your people control? What is your population?" Colonel Riviera looked to Admiral Patterson who simply nodded his head.

"The UNSC controls a population of over ninety billion spread out on over 800 worlds." The crowd was dead silent. Several mouths were gaping open. "Next question?"

Finally the reporters began raising their hands again. Once again, Colonel Riviera pointed at a reporter. "Colonel, what type of government does your people have?"

"Well, as recently as ten years ago, the colonies were administered by the Colonial Administration Authority which reported directly to the UEG which was democratically elected. The citizens of planets would elect governors for their colonies. However, several decades ago, a rebellion began. Eventually the UEG and CAA were so infiltrated and corrupt the military was forced to take power. Ever since the UNSC has controlled all human colonies."

The reporters were unnerved by this revelation but continued their questions. For almost a half hour Riviera answered question. Questions about religion, about their science, and about almost anything the reporters could think of. Finally, Riviera himself had to end it.

"I'm sorry but I must end this press conference. No further questions." With that he walked off stage and Colonial Security began showing the press off the grounds.

Riviera approached Admiral Patterson and President Adar and asked, "Well Mr. President, the secret's out. How do you think the people are going to take it?" Adar glanced at Patterson and shook his head.

"Not well. I wish you had agreed to let us keep this a secret." Patterson shook his head. "Its better they found out this way than when the Battlestars are leaving the system." Riviera was confused. Patterson saw the look on his face and explained.

"The Twelve Colonies are going to war."

Charybdis IX

Lance Corporal Kieth Reed gripped his seat tighter as the Pelican was rocked by more turbulence. He looked at the other nine ODSTs packed in the back of the dropship. They were all gripping their seats tightly.

"Weed, chill out. You look like a squid on his first trip dirt-side," Corporal Jerry King said. The other soldiers laughed. Weed was was LCpl Reed's nickname. "Oh,is that right? I seem to remember your first practice pod drop. You screamed like a little girl the whole way down. I didn't even know male voices could go that high!" he laughed back.

"He's right King. I heard your screaming broke the transmitter," Monster said through laughs. Almost as soon as the words were out of Monster's mouth, the pilot said over the radio, "We just cleared the light side of the planet. ETA to drop zone ten minutes!"

The ODSTs had been tasked with capturing Jason Kincaide, a known Insurrectionist who was responsible for the rebellion of Charybdis IX several years prior. The rebellion had been put down with a full marine division and a fleet of UNSC ships, but Kincaide had escaped capture.

The Insurrection was much weaker now in the Inner Colonies after three massive campaigns to rid the worlds of Innies. However, the Outer Colonies were still full of Innies and sympathizers, though nowhere near how bad it had been several years ago. In fact, Reed had received his first combat wound from fighting Insurrectionists on Eradinus II. He had just turned a corner when an Innie tackled him and emptied a clip from a Magnum into his stomach. He had managed to knife the man in the throat but he still had to be evacuated with his gut filled with biofoam.

Now, their mission was to capture Kincaide. They had been inserted on the bright side of Charybdis by the UNSC _Midsummer Night _and timed it so they would arrive during the middle of Scyllion's night. The soldiers were checking their weapons a final time when the Pelican began to decelerate and the pilot shouted, "Get ready. Ten seconds."

The Pelican's engines redirected themselves to allow the ship to land and the ramp dropped. The ten soldiers stormed out, guns at the ready. Seeing no one, they signaled for the Pelican to leave.

"Overlord, this is Outcast, boots on the ground. Confirm message, over," Staff Sergeant Li Quin said. "Roger, Outcast, this is Overlord. Message received." "Overlord, requesting radio silence for duration, over." "Roger Outcast. Good luck, out."

"Marines, move. Weed, Spider, take point," he said. The two soldiers did as told. They activated their VISRs so they could see in the darkness. They had been dropped off in a large park near the outskirts of Scyllion near Kincaide's hideout.

ONI officers had been following Kincaide for almost a year to confirm nothing would go wrong in this operation. He apparently usually took up residence in a series of twelve safe-houses. Tonight ONI spy satellites had tracked him to this one tonight. He also had only a light guard of about twelve men.

It didn't take the soldiers long to reach the house thanks to a short ride in two cars ONI had stashed for them. They ditched the cars two blocks from the building to avoid detection and proceeded on foot.

Weed was on foot so he was the first to see it. The building was subtle; a two story polycrete house with a thick wooden door. It was the average Outer Colony house. The ODSTs approached, their black armor helping to hide them as they approached the two guards standing watch outside. Weed and Spider moved so that they were on either side of the two guards. Weed nodded and Monster threw a stone in between them.

When they looked in and down to see what the source of the sound was, the two soldiers came up from behind, put their hands over the guards' mouths, and slit their throats. They lowered the two corpses quietly and prepared to breach the door. The other ODSTs also moved into position.

Spider placed a small C12 breaching charge on the door. After a moment it exploded and the soldiers stormed in, Weed in the lead. Inside there were several men on three couches watching television. LCpl Reed sidestepped to allow the rest of the soldiers to enter as he opened fire.

His silenced M7S spit out bullets into the Innie guards. They crumbled from the combined gunfire as the six ODSTs that had entered. When the last man dropped, the guards the soldiers reloaded and headed upstairs with Spider leading this time. His gun spit out several bursts of gunfire and LCpl Reed heard multiple dull thumps as bodies hit the floor.

Spider swept the room from the cover of the stairway before saying, "Clear," and walking up to the only door in the second story. Monster walked up and kicked in the door causing its top hinge to break off. Reed stormed in and quickly grabbed Kincaide who was still confused as to the intruder in his bedroom.

Sergeant Quin ran up to help Reed and tie Kincaide's hands with zip-strips. "What the hell is going on here?! Guards!" he screamed as he tried to get out of the marine's strong grip. "Shut the hell up, traitor" Spider said right before he punched the Innie in the gut, nearly doubling over if not for Reed who was holding him tight.

Sergeant Quin pulled out his panic button and activated it to signal the _Midsummer Night _they were ready for pickup. "Marines, defensive positions. We don't know if anyone heard his screaming," Sergeant Quin said over his radio headset. Most of the soldiers headed down stairs before they heard a commotion brewing downstairs.

Someone was knocking on the door when Reed and Quin arrived downstairs, having left Monster and Spider to guard Kincaide. A male voice could be heard and Reed saw movement through the windows, though the ODSTs had pulled the curtains as closed as they could get as they were too small for the windows.

"Hello, Mr. Kincaide? Is everything alright in there? We heard shouting. The marines looked to Quin for direction, one motioning toward his gun. Quin shook his head and said, "Everything is alright. Just had a little accident."

Apparently the man wasn't convinced. "Why are your windows shattered?" Quin hesitated. "That was part of the accident." "May we come in, just to make sure? Could you open the door?" "No, everything is fine."

The man had become suspicious. He tried to open the door and Reed pushed it closed again. They heard the man whisper to the others with him, "Something's wrong. Go get your guns." It was then the Sergeant decided to intervene. He opened the door and came face to face with the crowd.

Several gasped at the site they saw inside; several large armored ODSTs in a room with almost a dozen dead bodies. "What the hell did you do!" the man who had been talking shouted. He was a large man with light skin and dark hair. Quin, who stood higher than him with armor said, "Sir, calm down. This is an official UNSC operation. Please just return to your homes."

That was obviously the wrong thing to say because the man's face got red fast. "And you think that gives you the right to kill innocent men! And where is Mr. Kincaide!" Quin was angry now too. "Innocent! These men were guarding a known Insurrectionist leader."

"Yeah, right. Men, get your guns!" the man screamed. Someone already had theirs apparently and pulled out an antique high caliber revolver. "No, NO!" Quin screamed as he ducked the bullet. Reed pulled the Sergeant back and inside the house as another soldier slammed the door shut before the man could fire another shot.

The next bullet impacted against the door and apparently the door had metal reinforcement because the men heard the bullet ping off the steel. Several others also had pistols because they began firing shots through the door.

"Overlord, this is Outcast. We need pickup now! Our cover is blown. We have a crowd of unknown size descending on our location." Quin said into his radio. "Roger Outcast. Pelican is inbound. ETA thirty minutes." A man tried to crawl through the window beside the door only to be met with a punch to his nose by an armored fist.

Quin fired his SMG out into the street above head level and yelled, "Anyone else who tries that is going to get a bullet through their fucking brain!" The crowd still shot through the windows. Quin motioned for the marines to move upstairs to get away from the enemy fire when bullets also began coming from the rear windows. The soldiers sprinted upstairs with Reed and another ODST, nicknamed Micro, covered the stairway.

It was a while before the crowd tried to come through the windows again and began pouring in when they discovered the marines had moved. Many had also appeared to have retrieved their rifles. When one appeared and tried to come up the stairway, a bullet flew through his shoulder.

"Next time it won't be a shoulder wound!" Reed shouted down. That didn't stop several more from trying to get up the stairs. 5mm rounds tore into them and blood painted the walls. "Earth-loving pigs!" someone shouted. It was at that moment an RPG hit the bottom of the staircase, and everything went black.

** Okay, this chapter doesn't mention the Cylos or Wraith, I know but it sets up future encounters. If anyone was confused, Weed is Lance Corporal Kieth Reed's nickname. I hope you guys like it and review. Good or bad, its the reviews that help me avoid cliches. **


	13. Author's Note

Authors Note

Okay guys I'm afraid I'm stuck with this story. I can't think of a way to go with it. I've been staring at the blank writing program for a long time hoping something will come to me, but I've got nothing. If you guys have any ideas submit them. It might get me started again.


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